Last Chance
by Ktkat9
Summary: AU. Yusei has grown up in several different orphanages. He has never been able to remain with one family for more than a short time. For sixteen years its been the same thing over and over again. When he decides to run away, though, he finds that sometimes fate has a strange way of bringing you home. Yami is used to cases like his, but will his home be enough?
1. Welcome

This is a story I have been working on for over a year now. I'm trying to write in as many different genres as I can, and my last story was more fantasy. This one will be more emotional. I hope you enjoy, and please review! Btw, there are no OC's in this.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

"*All units: Suspect is currently headed west on main, repeat suspect…ksshh*"

"Dimmit!" The boy glanced down at the police scanner, cursing the piece of junk, before focusing his attention back on the road. This was the sixth tome he'd tried to escape. Sixteen was too young to live on his own, according to his social worker. Check that, every social worker. None wanted his case. He'd practically grown up in an orphanage. Some foster families took him in, but never for long. He had too many problems, too many issues, and too much past.

He blinked the tears from his eyes. It wasn't like he actually _wanted_ a family or anything. Who wants someone constantly worrying over you, scolding you for bad grades and being out late, but still baking you a cake for your birthday, who wants that?

'Not me. I'm fine on my own. I've always been alone and it's not like that's going to change. I'm running away and this time, nobody will find me. I'm sick of living in that place. Good for me, ha! None of those adults have even spent the night in an orphanage, let alone practically their entire lives. How can they say what's best for me?' He suddenly saw flashing lights up ahead and pulled off to the side of the road. He was well hidden down a small road, bordered on one side by people's fences, and on the other side by a dark forest.

He hid the car behind some bushes and cut the engine. Staring out the window, into the darkness among the trees, he sighed. 'I remember this place.' Glancing back up the road, he saw another patrol car drive by the end of the was only a matter of time before one decided to turn down. 'They're all over the place. I'll have to wait for the heat to die down a bit.' Taking one last, uncertain glance back at the ominous trees, he made up his mind and got out of the car. As silently as possible, he closed the door behind him and headed to the only place he could really be alone.

About half a mile in, he came upon a small cliff, overlooking a river. It may have been dark, but he knew the way by heart. The cliff was about ten feet up, or, rather, the river was ten feet down. Silently, he gathered a small handful of stones and sat down near the edge. One by one, he threw them down and watched as they disappeared into the darkness, a tiny splash the only sign they reached the water.

"I always thought I was the only person who knew about this spot." The boy, startled, jumped and spun to face the new arrival. "Easy, I'm not going to hurt you." The man received a wary look in return. "I'm not going to turn you into the police, either. Do you mind if I sit?" The boy scooted as far away from the man as possible. The man sat, respecting his distance. They were both silent for a while, then the man turned. "By the way, my name is Yami. Yami Sennen. You?"

Silence. The boy hadn't relaxed a bit.

"I already told you, I'm not going to turn you in. I just want to talk."

For the first time that night, the boy spoke. "About what? Why I ran away?"

Yami silently cheered himself for getting a response, but made sure not to show any outward reaction. "No. I know why you ran away. How about you we talk about you? Do you have any hobbies? Any interests?" Silence. Stunned silence this time. "How about what you're looking for in a family?"

"Why are you asking me this?" He whispered.

"Because I've been contacted by the orphanage. They asked me a little while ago to consider adopting you. I want to know if you would like to come home with me. Because this is your life, it's your choice. But I can already tell you, the whole family thinks you would be a great addition to the household, Yusei."

"How long have you known about me? And why hasn't anyone said anything to me?" Yusei whispered. He was always nervous, being this close to people. There had only been a few in his life who hadn't hurt him.

The man, Yami, kept his gaze on the opposite bank. "I've been reading into you're history for about two months. The orphanage knows me pretty well by now. They call me the 'Last Chance'. They say I find homes for kids with problems, kids who are trouble makers, or are just plain unadoptable. I do have to turn some down, so I asked them not to mention me until I'd made my decision."

Yusei hadn't relaxed at all since Yami had sat down, and he never raised his voice above his almost silent whisper. "So I've finally been deemed unadoptable? And you're going to adopt me and, what, whip me into shape? My choice, yeah, right." He wrapped his arms around his legs; knees pulled up to his chest, and rested his chin on them.

"No. the choice is yours. But I do ask that you consider us. I think I should explain. I said they send me kids who are problems. In most cases, I've found that it's the adults that have problems with the kids. Two families who have adopted from the orphanage you are at in the past four years have attempted to file lawsuits for severe neglect. You are only one of many that's run away. And three years ago, someone was actually kidnapped. So no. I don't think you're the problem. And I promise, I will in no way attempt to 'whip you into shape'"

"What if I say no? Will you make me go back, even knowing what you do about them?" This was the most Yusei had talked to a stranger in a really long time.

"If you'll allow me, I can find you another place to go. Whether that be another family, or another orphanage, it's your life, and you should have at least some control of it."

Yusei sat in silence. This man was unlike anyone he'd ever met before. He didn't tell Yusei what would be best for him. He let him think on his own. But . . . what if it was all a trick? What if-

"Come on. Let's go for a drive."

"Hn? D-Drive? Where?"

"Anywhere you want to go. I can't let you go off on your own with all these cops running around, and I don't really have anywhere to go. So how about it?"

Deciding to trust his instincts, Yusei stood up and followed the man down a trail. "How did you find me?"

Yami glanced back. "Luck. I was called because you'd disappeared and just took a walk to clear my head. You realize my family was scheduled to meet you next week? Maybe fate intervened, maybe not. Maybe it just means that someone wanted us to meet before you left." They reached Yami's car and he got behind the wheel.

Yusei, having maintained his distance the whole walk, suddenly realized that getting into that car meant he would be sitting less than a foot away from Yami. He fidgeted outside the passenger door. 'If I get in, he'll be close enough to hurt me. If I don't, he'll get impatient at me for holding him up. I already followed him this far, so there's no going back now, but I can't make my lags move. I-I'm scared.'

"You don't have to force yourself. You can get in the back if you want." Yusei stared at him for a minute, then slowly climbed into the back seat, as far out of reach as he could get. Once he was buckled in, Yami started the engine and drove out of the parking lot.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

"You never answered my questions. I'm not trying to pressure you or anything, but I would like to know what you're looking for when it comes to a family."

They'd been driving in silence for about ten minutes. Having no destination in mind had caused Yami to just wander around. He wouldn't lie, in that as soon as Yusei was in his car his first instinct had been to drive straight home where he knew the boy would be safe. But he knew that Yusei still didn't trust him, and any stunts like that would wreak any chance he had of saving the frightened teen. He knew from Yusei's file that just the conversation they'd had was a miracle, but getting him into his car? Even he couldn't believe it.

"You said you and your family were scheduled to meet me next week. Does that mean you've already made up your mind?" Yusei avoided the question he was unsure how to answer.

"Yes and no. we decided that we would love to have you, but we'd meet to determine if you wanted to come home with us, and to find if there was anything not included in what we were told that would limit our being able to provide a suitable home for you. Even if we hadn't met tonight, the choice would have still been yours."

They were silent for a minute, Yami focusing on the road and Yusei contemplating his next question. He still hadn't raised his voice, so Yami had to lean back a bit to hear him. "Are you sure you still want me? Even after knowing about me running away again?"

Yami smiled at that. "Actually, yes. My youngest son, Yuma, he tried to run away when I first met him. He didn't want to go to another home, and managed to make it almost four blocks away before he was caught. He was five at the time."

"What was wrong with a five year old that made him unadoptable?" Yusei was incredulous.

"He was blinded in an accident when he was young. He's a very talented kid, though. Doesn't let it hold him back from anything."

They drove around for a while until Yami pulled into a parking lot. Looking out the window, Yusei was shocked to see the train station. Yami decided to take a risk. "I know this was where you were heading, so if you still want to go, I won't stop you. I'll be the first to admit that there's nothing I want more than to bring you home, but I won't stop you. I said the choice is yours, and I never lie."

They sat in silence again. This time, though, it was in apprehension. Yusei stared at the entrance to the station. He could see the time table from there, and it said the last train was leaving in ten minutes. Without a glance at Yami, he got out of the car.

Yami felt his stomach drop. 'Was this too big of a risk?' He thought worriedly.

Yusei walked around the car and towards the station. He got about a yard before he stopped. 'What am I doing? I don't even know where I'm going. Somewhere away from here isn't specific enough. Not to mention I left my backpack back in the car. And . . . Yami. Was he serious about wanting me? _Me,_ me? Like, he knows my faults and he still wants me to go home with him? Isn't that what a real family is like? What if I'm making the biggest mistake of my life?' He thought about his decision for a moment longer, then slowly, but determinedly walked back to the back seat and climbed in. 'If this is all a lie, nothing will stop me from hopping the next train to I don't care where.'

Yami forced himself to remain outwardly calm, but inside, he was fighting back a huge sigh of relief. He took a moment to compose himself before asking, "So, do you want to meet everyone else?"

Yusei lifted his head to gaze into the rearview mirror, directly at Yami. Quietly, but with clear conviction, Yusei nodded his head and said, "Yes."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

The Sennen house was a two story building that had obviously had some large renovations. The paint on the original building was old and slightly faded, while the new parts were bright. The old part was a game shop on the bottom, Kame Game, to be exact, and on top was what appeared to be a living area. The new part consisted of a garage built next to the shop, and another living area on top of that.

"We had to have some extra rooms added on about a year ago. Yuma called it 'house surgery'." Yami chuckled at the memory. "Anyway, should we go up?" He left the garage door open, knowing Yusei would feel trapped if it were to be closed.

"Okay."

They went up the stairs to the house and Yusei caught sight of a boy slightly shorter than Yami, but who looked just like him. "Yami, there's still no word on- oh." The boy stopped and stared at Yusei, who suddenly felt nervous again. Yami saw this and stepped forward, preventing the boy from getting any closer.

"Easy, Yugi. He's a bit . . . skittish, just give him some space."

"Oh, okay." Yugi made no move to come any closer to Yusei, but he did smile comfortingly. "Hello, my name's Yugi."

"By the way," Yami steered Yugi towards the kitchen, motioning for Yusei to follow, "Where are the boys?"

"Oh, Yuma's asleep and Jaden's trying to hide on the stairs."

Another voice, this one younger, let out a shout of indignation. "Thanks a lot, Yugi! How'd you know I was here?"

Yugi didn't even glance at the staircase. "I always know. Now get to bed." Yusei, who was still keeping his distance, heard feet pounding up the stairs and then a door slam. "You'll have to forgive him. Jaden's been the most excited about meeting you. He's always wanted a big brother."

Yugi smiled warmly at Yusei, placing a cup of coffee on the table between them before returning to the other side of the kitchen. Yusei cautiously stepped forward and picked it up, holding it in both hands and leaning against the wall.

"So, what now? I mean, it's nice and all that you want to adopt me, but let's be honest. Police are looking for me. You can't just keep me here. So what are we going to do?"

"Yami, who was used to Yusei's quiet way of talking, spoke up. "I already thought of that. Just give me a minute, alright?" He walked past Yusei into the living room.

"So you're Yusei?" Yusei jumped slightly and looked at Yugi.

"Y-yeah. You're Yugi, right?" He was trying to be polite, but was unsure of whether it was working or not.

Yugi smiled. "Yeah. So this must be strange for you. I mean, running away, only to meet up with Yami, of all people. If you need anything, just let me know, alright?"

"Alright."

They both looked up as Yami returned, smiling. "It's all settled. The police know you've been found, the headmaster found where you hid her car and I talked her into letting you keep what you left in it. She also said that if you and I go down there now to fill out your adoption papers, she won't press charges. Apparently, they don't really want you back. So, what do you say?"

Yusei placed his coffee back on the table, then turned and answered. "Let's go."

Yami chuckled. "Well, then. Welcome to the family, Yusei Sennen."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

I have been working on this story for over a year now, and am almost done writing it. Please remember that my other story, Danger: Attack Cat, is my top priority at the moment, but I wanted to get this first chapter out to see what you all thought of it. Please review and tell me what you think. And if you have any questions, I would be more than happy to answer them for you. :3


	2. Welcome Pt2

Here is the second chapter! I am sorry for the wait, but as I said, Danger: Attack Cat is my priority right now. Thank you for reading, and please review! Also, the chapters have been broken up into parts because they are way long, and you don't need to wait several months between updates just to read something 8-10,000 words long. That said, please review!

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

"Are you sure that's all you have?" Yami questioned Yusei, who was carrying a small, threadbare backpack that was almost empty.

"Yeah. We're allowed one outfit each of our choosing, and the rest are the clothes they loan us. School requires a school uniform, and since they paid for it, they said they get to keep it. This is all I have. Never really needed anything else." As wary as Yusei was, he couldn't help but feel his barriers come down, just a bit, around Yami. The man let Yusei keep his distance and never tried to step over any boundaries.

They climbed in the car, Yusei still in the back, and pulled out of the parking lot. "So do you want to get breakfast on the way home? Or do you want to meet your brothers first?" Yami asked conversationally.

"Um, could we eat at your house? I'm kind of tired." Yusei, caught off guard by the question, answered.

"Okay. I'll try not to let the boys talk too long." They drove in silence for a minute, before Yami spoke up again. "By the way, you never answered my other question. Do you have any other hobbies or interests?"

"Um, well, I'm good with mechanical things, and Duel Monsters."

"Ooh. You'll fit in even better then I thought. The whole house seems to have unusual talent for that game. Yugi actually stole the title 'King of Games' from me in high school." Yami smiled proudly.

"Does Yuma play? You said he's blind, right?"

"Yeah, we got him a braille deck about a year ago. He can be a pretty formidable opponent."

"I'll have to be on my guard, then."

"Yeah. Oh, no." Yami's smile vanished, replaced by a frown and . . . was that a blush? Was Yami blushing?

"What's wrong?" Yusei asked wearily.

"Nothing. I just remembered that Joey planned on coming over this morning. Forgive me for saying so, but I'm a little nervous about introducing you two."

Knowing what Yami was talking about, Yusei tried to ease both their fears. "Don't worry. I'll, I think I'll be okay."

"I'll try to keep him under control, but well, he's like a rowdy puppy. Been that way as long as I've known him. And he still shows no sign of growing up." They made small talk for the rest of the way home. When they were about a block away, Yami's phone rang. He cast a quick glance at Yusei. "I know this is illegal, but I think you're old enough to know better than to copy me." He took out his phone and answered it. "Hello? Oh, hey, Yugi . . . oh? . . . Yeah, I was just thinking the same thing. . . . Okay, goodbye, Yugi." Yami managed to end the call and hide the phone just as an officer drove by.

"So what did Yugi have to say?" Yusei asked.

"Joey is at the house. He brought his son, Bronk, and it's pretty crazy right now. I know you said you'd be okay with meeting him, but I think it would be better if you were a bit more settled in before we introduce him."

"Alright." Yusei was secretly glad. He had had a long night and was in no mood to meet yet another new person. Especially if it was someone Yami was wary of introducing to him.

"How about we go het brunch while we wait?"

"That sounds great actually. I haven't eaten since lunch yesterday."

Yami turned the car around and drove to a nearby fast food place. Burger World. He found a parking space pretty quickly in the nearly empty lot, and they got out. "You go find a booth, I'll order chicken sandwiches, alright?"

Yusei nodded and began to make his way to an empty both in the back. He was almost there when someone jumped him from behind, wrapping their arms around his neck. He stumbled forward, caught off guard, and was about to attack when the person was yanked off him. "Crow! You know he doesn't like being touched."

"Yeah, yeah, Jack. I know. Sorry, Yus." Yusei turned to see his tow best friends standing behind him. Jack, looking royally peeved at the red-headed boy, and Crow, trying to free himself from the blonde's iron grip.

"So, Yusei," Jack began, steering them all to the booth he'd seen Yusei heading towards. He took a sip of coffee, sat down, and continued. "What's new? We haven't seen you in over a month."

Yusei slid in next to Crow, across from Jack. "Well, not much. I ran away again. Kinda got kicked out, and was adopted this morning." He would be lying if he said that he wasn't eager to see their reaction."

"Oh, that's . . ." As Yusei's words sank in, Jack's eyes shot open and he began to choke on his coffee.

"You're adopted? By who? Why didn't you call us?"

"Whoa, whoa, easy-"

"Don't you tell us to calm down." Jack, now recovered, demanded. He reached across the table and grabbed Yusei by the front of his shirt. "Why didn't you call-"Suddenly Jack found himself the one at a disadvantage. Yami had arrived just in time to see someone grabbing the newest member of his family. He wrapped an arm around the larger teen's neck and yanked him off Yusei.

"What's going on here?" Yami saw who he'd grabbed. "Jack? What do you think you're doing?"

"Yami?" Jack turned as best as he could.

"It's alright. He's my friend. He didn't mean it." Yusei tried to defend him.

"Yusei, you know Yami? How?" Jack asked.

"He, uh, well, h-he adopted me. This morning."

Jack's jaw went slack as he stared at Yusei. After a moment, during which time Yami released him, he turned and addressed Yami. "So this is the kid dad said you were looking into? Please explain to me how you managed to adopt him a week before you even met him."

Yami slid in next to Jack. "You want to tell them, Yusei?"

"Yeah, but, um, how do you two know each other?"

"He looked into my case when I was thirteen. That's how I met dad. Yami couldn't take me in, so he introduced me to his cousin. Wait." Jack realized what that meant, "If you're adopted by Yami, that means we're cousins, Yusei." Jack grinned at the thought.

"Yes, and as such, I will be sure to inform Seto of his son's behavior just now."

Jack looked at Yami incredulously. "What 'behavior'? You mean my grabbing him?"

"He does that with everybody. He wasn't attacking Yus', or anything. Just . . . being Jack." Crow spoke up.

"I realize that, but I would appreciate it if he learned to keep his hands to himself. As the eldest son of Seto Kaiba, I expect more manners from you, Jack." Jack flushed and stared at Yami, slightly taken aback. "Now, would you care to tell me why you decided to disregard the fact that restaurants don't take kindly to many kinds of physical contact?"

"It was my fault. I wanted to see his reaction and just told him I'd been adopted-"

"Speaking of which, you still haven't told us how, exactly, he managed to adopt you. Dad said he was going to meet with you next week."

"I, well, wasn't aware that anyone was looking into my case, so I, well, ran away. Last night. I borrowed the headmaster's car and used her police scanner to avoid the cops until it died. I just ended up at the river. Next thing I knew, he's just there, talking to me."

"I got the call that he'd disappeared and decided to take a walk to clear my head. I just happened to run into him. We talked it over, and when I called the orphanage, they told me that if I filled out his paperwork immediately, no charges would be pressed for, 'borrowing', the car."

"You took her car? Really? Awesome!" Crow slung an arm around Yusei's shoulders, then caught sight of Yami's glare, and erased his grin. "Uh, I mean, bad Yusei! Running away. And you stole a car, how could you?" he switched to shaking a finger in mock anger.

Yami was about to respond when his phone went off again. "Excuse me." He walked out to the sidewalk to answer it, and they resumed their talking.

"Anyway, Yusei, as cousins, I feel it is my duty to prepare you. Our family is very close and very large. I assume you've heard what Yami is referred to as? Last Chance?" Yusei nodded and Jack continued. "You have two brothers. Jaden, who Yami found when he was in America, and Yuma, who came from the same facility as you. Two boys isn't exactly enough to make a name for himself."

"I've noticed." Yusei replied, beginning to suspect where this was headed.

"He gets many cases, and finds suitable homes for them. Places that would be best for them to be raised in. A lot of his friends have taken in kids. I don't say this often, but he really knows what he's doing. We're probably going to be seeing a lot of each other."

"Yeah, and Yami works for his cousin, and has his kid brother living with him, so just that should tell you how close the family is. I think you finally got yourself a good home, Yus." Crow smiled warmly, all too aware of his friend's past.

"Sorry to interrupt, but Yusei, we should probably get going. Jack, Crow, we'll see you later." Yami said, picking up the uneaten sandwiches.

"Oh, you bet we will. Me and Jack need to make sure you're good enough for our Yusei."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Yusei's bedroom only had a bed, neatly made, a desk, a dresser, a window, and a closet. He placed his bag on the bed and removed his deck, a small, portable toolkit, and a sketchbook. Drawing was just a hobby he'd picked up, but he really enjoyed it.

He sat down and flipped through the pages. They were mainly pictures of Duel Monsters and dragons, but one kept reappearing. It was l large, white dragon that he'd kept dreaming about. 'Stardust Dragon.' He thought. He ran his fingers lightly over the dragon, flying high above the ground, free of anything but the clouds.

"Yusei, Could you come down here?" Yami called.

"Coming," He raised his voice just enough to be heard. He placed the sketchbook down by him and headed downstairs.

"Yusei, this is Yuma. Yuma, this is- Yuma, Yuma?" Yami began looking around, not seeing his youngest anywhere. Yusei glanced around, trying to locate his new brother. Yami turned to him. "He was here just a second ago. Can you help me find him?"

"Yeah, sure." Yusei walked over to the couch. No little boy behind it. No Yuma under the table, behind the recliner, or in the drapes. Yusei decided to check the kitchen and knelt to look under the kitchen table.

" _Gotcha!"_ a small bundle leapt on Yusei's back and held on tight. "Ha ha! You couldn't find me! I got you!"

Yusei looked down at the small boy now attached to his waist. He had unusual hair, black with red, and was grinning the biggest grin Yusei had ever seen.

"Yuma," Yami warned, "What did I tell you?"

"To behave and . . . uh . . . um" Yuma let go of Yusei and looked down, grinning sheepishly.

Yami sighed and looked at Yusei. "Well, I guess that introduction took care of itself. You'll be able to meet Jaden when he gets back from his friend's house. Don't know why he's there." He shot a slightly annoyed look at the door, but then shook his head and turned back to the conversation. "Yugi you met last night, so I'll let you get back to unpacking. If you need anything, I'll be down here getting lunch ready."

"Alright." Yusei replied. He cast a quick glance at his new brother, who was now running around the living room, yelling something that sounded like 'Astral', before he went back upstairs. 'I wonder what my other brother will be like.' He thought to himself.

He was lost in thought as he reached the top of the stairs and turned into the first room on his right. Suddenly, he realized that he wasn't alone. A tallish boy with brown hair was sitting on his bed, eating a sucker, and looking at his sketches. Yusei stopped in the doorway and stared. Apparently sensing someone looking at him, the boy looked up with a huge smile on his face.

"Hi! Oh, sorry for snooping, by the way. My name's Jaden."

"Um, hi. I'm Yusei."

"Our new brother, yeah. I heard Yugi say you were moving in today."

"Um, not to impose, but I thought Yami said you were at a friend's house."

"Yeah, I was at Sy's place, but remembered that I forgot to finish clearing out the closet. I snuck back in through the skylight in my room. Actually, that's what I'm doing in here in the first place. Just happened to see your drawings and well, heh." Jaden suddenly looked very sheepish. "Yeah, sorry again for the snooping."

"That's alright."

"You're great, by the way." Jaden held the sketchbook out and stood up.

"Um, thanks." Yusei blushed, glancing at the floor. He wasn't used to compliments.

"I should probably finish with the closet. Its days like this that I see why everyone calls me a slacker." Jaden stuck the sucker back in his mouth and strolled over to the closet. "I got most of it finished earlier, but you know, distractions and all that."

"Do you need any help?" Yusei offered.

"Naw, don't worry about it. Besides, this is all that's left." Jaden hefted a longboard, and a large bag of baseball stuff out of what had apparently been the sports equipment closet.

"Yusei- oh, Jaden." Yami walked through the door. "Used the skylight again?" Jaden just grinned. "Anyway, lunch is ready. Yusei, feel free to help yourself. Jaden, you and Yuma ae coming grocery shopping with me. And, for the record, putting the sports equipment just outside the basement door isn't what I asked you to do."

"Oops."

"Yeah. And now you're going to have to find a way to thank Yugi for finishing your job for you. It's scheduled to rain tonight, so you can't just finish this in the morning, alright?" He turned to Yusei, who instinctively took a small step back, not wanting to be scolded as well. He had, after all, held Jaden up from doing his job. "Yusei, there's lunch downstairs for you and Yugi. If you need to reach me, my number is written on the whiteboard by the landline, okay?" Yusei nodded in understanding. "I know I was going to say something else- oh, yeah. Yugi's out back, finishing Jaden's job," Yami looked pointedly at Jaden, "you just need to finish unpacking. If you get bored, we have books and a TV in the living room, or you can help Yugi if you want."

"Alright."

"We'll see you later. Jaden, Come on."

"If you get too tired of the boring movies, you can watch this." Yuma ran in and shoved a Scooby Doo DVD in his hands, before running back out again.

Jaden chuckled as he walked out, and Yami gave him a smile and slight eye roll. Yusei walked over and waved his new family goodbye as they left.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

After Yami, Yuma, and Jaden were gone, Yusei and Yugi sat down for a lunch of thick sandwiches. "So what do you think of Jaden and Yuma?" Yugi asked, trying to start a conversation with the skittish boy.

"I like them." Yusei muttered, avoiding eye contact. It wasn't that he was lying, he really did like them, but he found himself suddenly nervous without Yami around.

"That's good." They fell into silence. "So what do you do for fun?" He tried again.

"I play Duel Monsters, and I like fixing things."

"Oh, really? Well, maybe we could duel later. What do you think?"

"Alright."

Lunch continued on in silence, with Yugi occasionally trying to start a conversation, and Yusei answering in short, clipped sentences. "Just put your dishes in the dishwasher, okay?" He said when they were done. Yusei obeyed and headed back upstairs. 'I hope he likes it here,' Yugi thought as he went out to the back yard and started on the pile Jaden had made, moving everything to the basement. 'I'm sure Jaden and Yuma will pull him out of his shell soon enough.'

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Thank you all for reading! I would really like some feedback on how I'm doing with this story, so please leave a review on your way out! And there is only one part left in this chapter, so, yeah. Please tell me how I'm doing. ;3


	3. Welcome Pt3

I have moved this story from Yugioh 5D's, to here because the farther I get in writing it, the more I realize that it is more Yugi and Yami centric. I know you may or may not be able to see it now, but just trust me. Also, please review! And enjoy! This is the last part for this chapter.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Back in his room, Yusei dug down in the smallest pocket of his backpack. His hand clasped cool metal, and he withdrew the one thing he'd managed to hide from his social workers and various families. A key.

A single, solitary, key. It wasn't big, or special in any way, but what it unlocked meant more to Yusei then anything in the world. To him, it symbolized freedom. He'd planned on mailing it to Jack for safe keeping at the train station, but now that he wasn't going anywhere, for now that is, he wanted to find a good hiding place for it.

As silently as he spoke, he walked over to the- his, now, empty closet and found what most old houses had, (and, as his bedroom was located in the older part of the house, it was quite easy to locate.)

Peeling wallpaper. He eased a small piece away from the wall; creating a small pocket and slid the key in. nobody would find it, unless they knew what they were looking for.

Satisfied that it was safe, he turned back to his room. It took him less than two minutes to finish putting everything he owned where it went. 'Now what should I do?' Finally deciding, he grabbed his sketchbook and continued his work on the latest picture. Something that just came to him when he'd first seen Yugi.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

It had been almost an hour since Yami and the boys had left. Yugi had gotten most of the pile moved, taken a break to check on Yusei, and was now moving the last of it. It wasn't like they had a lot of stuff, it was more due to the fact that the light had burned out in the basement, making it almost treacherous to navigate. Not to mention he'd stumbled upon a photo album from when he and Yami had first met. He'd still had his stitches in at the time the first several had been taken, and in the later ones, scars.

'Don't think about that now.' Yugi berated himself, 'It's in the past. You can't take back bad decisions.' He shook his head, trying to rid his thoughts of such memories, but unfortunately, lost his footing and fell.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Yusei jumped when he heard a loud crash, accidently making a line off the image. Deciding to worry about his sketch later, he got up and headed downstairs. "Yugi?" he called softly, looking around but finding no one. He saw the back door was open and headed out, still looking around. "Yugi?" He called again.

"D-down here." Yusei hurried over and looked down the cellar steps at where Yugi was seated, clutching his hand.

"What happened? Are you alright?"

"I'll be fine, just help me into the house, would you?"

Yusei helped Yugi to stand and walk up the steps. It wasn't until they'd made it through the back door, however, that Yusei got a good look at his hand. His fist was clenched and pressed against his chest, but the teen could still see that it was covered in blood. "What happened?" He asked, easing Yugi down to sit on the couch.

"I tripped. Guess I cut my on something on the way down. There's a first aid kit in the cabinet closest to the fridge."

Yusei went and got it, mentally storing that information in the back of his mind. He found the kit with no trouble and grabbed a small towel from the oven door, which he soaked before returning to the living room.

"Thank you." Yugi said, reaching for the cloth. Yusei ignored him, choosing instead, to reach for Yugi's injured hand himself and gently dab it free of blood. Yugi hissed when he touched the cut, but otherwise didn't resist. "Man," he said, examining his still bleeding hand, "that looks deeper than I thought." The cut was deep and had split the skin the entire way across his palm.

"I'll get another towel." Yusei stood and headed for the kitchen. He found the drawer with towels after a few tries and had just turned back to the living room when the front door opened. Instantly, he felt something he hadn't felt since the last time he'd been returned to the orphanage. Raw terror.

"Yugi? What happened?" He saw Yami walk over and place a hand on Yugi's shoulder. "Let me see." He saw Yami take Yugi's hand. He saw Yami frown, saw him reach into his pocket and pull his keys back out. "Come on. I think you may need stitches." Yami put a hand on Yugi's back, and then saw the towel in Yusei's hand. "Yusei," he began, but stopped when he saw the boy's pale face. Slowly, he stood up and went to move over to him, but that only seemed to snap Yusei out of his trance.

"No! I swear . . . I swear I didn't do anything! Please!" He backed up, stumbled, and found himself pressed against a wall.

"Hey, easy, easy, Yusei. Look at me, just calm down," Yami mentally groaned. He needed to get Yugi to the hospital, and could tell that Yusei was too spooked for him to be able to calm him down, so that left only one option. "Yusei, I'm going to take Yugi to the hospital now. Your brothers are here, and you have my number if you need anything." He made sure to speak calmly and clearly. As much as he didn't want to, Yugi needed help and Yusei needed time to calm down. "Come on, Yugi." He took one last look at Yusei, who was now seated on the ground, face buried in his arms, shaking.

Jaden and Yuma, who had been playing out in the front yard, stopped instantly and ran over when they saw (or, in Yuma's case, heard) Yami helping Yugi to the car. "What happened?"

"Yugi cut himself. I'm taking him to the hospital. I want you boys to stay here and, if you can, try to talk to Yusei. He's scared, so be careful."

"Okay, I'll see what I can do. Are you going to be alright, Yugi?" Jaden asked.

"Yeah. I'll be fine."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

'There is no possible way this day could get more stressful.' Yami thought to himself as he stood out in the lobby of the hospital. He would have gone back with Yugi, but had gotten a call from Joey. He'd been wondering if he could come by and pick up a toy his son had left behind. At some point in the conversation, Yami had let it slip that he was at the hospital with Yugi. While Joey was a good friend, he also had a bad habit of overreacting when hearing one of his friends, especially his little buddy needed help.

"What's wrong with you?" Yugi asked, walking back into the room with a bandage on his hand.

"Joey's on his way." Yami sighed. "I woke up at four this morning, dodged the police with a terrified runaway in my car, adopted and brought home said runaway, got threatened by a pair of protective teens . . ." He trailed off.

"You're not thinking it was a mistake to take him in, are you?

Yami thought for a moment before sighing and shaking his head. "No. I don't regret taking him home. Today has just been crazy."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Back at home, Jaden had made sure to wait for Yusei to have some time to recover before setting Yuma up with cartoons (he loved to try to guess what was going on by the sounds) and heading upstairs to where his new big brother had retreated.

"Yusei," he called through the door, "Can I come in?" He waited, counting to thirty, and then opened the door slowly. "Yusei, what happened?" The teen was seated in the corner of the dark room.

"I didn't hurt him. I swear."

"Hey, I never said you did." Jaden replied soothingly, and then he realized something. "You thought we'd blame you." He watched as Yusei's shoulders stiffened. "You too, huh?" Yusei jerked his head up to stare at Jaden, who just smiled sadly. "I was returned by six families. When Yami took my case the only thing in my mind was . . . knowing it wouldn't last. I took to sneaking out my skylight to sit on the roof, figuring I'd better practice for when everything blew up. Yugi caught me once. I was coming back in. I figured they'd be angry, I mean, I took their hospitality and began sneaking out." He paused, remembering.

"You're still here. What did Yugi do?" Yusei asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

"He offered me a rope ladder, so I wouldn't have to keep using that big oak to get down." He smiled at Yusei's incredulous expression. "That was my reaction, too. He said that if he tried to keep me in, I'd just find another way out. If having an escape route was what made me feel safe, then he wouldn't take that away from me." Throughout the story, Jaden had slowly edged closer, and he now took the opportunity to ease himself down against the wall, about two feet from him. "I know it may take a while, but just know that Yugi and Yami, they actually care about us."

They sat in silence for a few minutes before, surprisingly, Yusei decided to break it. "I was twelve. This . . . this family took me in. They had a toddler that would always get in trouble. He would crawl out of his crib, open child-locked cabinets . . . but he was their baby. They hadn't adopted him. They'd only adopted me so he could have a big brother. Anyway, one day, I was in the living room and I heard something falling down the stairs. When I got there, I saw that it was their kid." Yusei paused, rubbing at his eyes. Jaden wasn't sure how to comfort him, so he just stayed put, waiting for him to continue. "He wasn't moving, and I-I just wanted to see if he was alright. They . . . they came in to see me kneeling over him and, and-" Yusei fell silent.

"They blamed you." Jaden finished for him.

"They didn't even give me a chance to explain. After they brought me back, I learned that the kid would be alright. Well, not really alright. He broke his leg and will have a limp for the rest of his life, but he lived."

Jaden sat quietly, watching Yusei scrub his eyes. "I'm not going to tell you that's not going to happen here. Not because it will, but because you won't believe me. I can't tell you to forget everything that's happened to you and trust us. That's something you will have to decide on for yourself. But I can tell you this; Yami doesn't blame you. None of us do. Yugi, well, he's clumsy. This isn't the first time he's gotten hurt, and I can tell you right now it won't be the last."

Yusei nodded silently.

"Tell you what. It's getting late. How about we go make dinner for when they get back and you can see for yourself."

Yusei showed no sign that he'd heard Jaden for a moment, then he looked up. "Can you teach me? I can't cook."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

 _"Joey!_ I cut my hand! Its not exactly a fatal injury." Yugi loved his best friend, but really, this was starting to be a bit much. Yami had been lost in thought since Joey had arrived at the hospital, and now they were almost back at the Sennen house.

"Yug', c'mon. you gave me a scare. I just want to make sure you're really alright-"

"Joey," Yami broke in, and the seriousness of his tone made both Joey and Yugi stop. "I have to tell you something before we get home."

"Yeah?"

"Do you remember that case I was looking into? The boy . . ."

"The one who kept running away? Um, Yumi . . . Yuya . . . Yusei . . . Yusei! Right?"

"Yeah."

"What about him?"

"He's at the house right now. I adopted him early this morning. I didn't tell you because I wanted him to have time to settle in. he's very skittish, and you're, well . . ." he trailed off, not wanting to insult his friend.

"I'm not good at being calm?"

"Yeah. No offence or anything, I'm just kinda nervous having you two meet right now. Before we left, he had a bit of a breakdown. I'm not sure how he'll be when we get home."

"I understand. I'll leave if he gets uncomfortable."

Yami nodded. "Thank you. I hope Jaden was able to talk to him."

"We'll find out in a minute." Yugi said as they pulled into the driveway.

They walked up to the front door and opened it, only to be greeted by the smell of cooked food. Yami looked around. Yuma was listening to cartoons, the bloodstain on the couch had been cleaned up, and Jaden was laughing at something in the kitchen. "Hello?" Yami walked past Yuma, towards where the laughter was coming from.

Jaden was leaning against the counter, holding an apron Anzu had left behind the last time she'd been over.

"He's been trying to get Yusei to put that on since they came downstairs." Yuma filled him in, not even turning away from the TV.

"Hi, Yugi. Hey, Joey." Jaden called, bounding out of the kitchen. He paused by Yami just long enough to whisper, "Talk to him. He needs to hear from you that you don't blame him."

Yami looked at Yusei, who was avoiding eye contact, but still managing to keep him in the corner of his vision. As neither spoke, they were both able to hear Jaden ushering everybody up to Yugi's room.

Once they were gone, Yami took a step forwards, but stopped when Yusei tensed. "I-I want to thank you."

" . . . For what?"Yusei whispered, voice even quieter than before."

"For helping Yugi. I know you don't like being around people, but not everyone would have done that." He looked down, lost in thought.

" . . . How is he?"

"He's fine. Only needed four stitches."

"Jaden says this isn't the first time something like this has happened. Yugi accidently hurting himself." Yusei focused on stirring the pot on the stove.

"It's not as bad as Jaden makes it sound. Sometimes Yugi just needs to watch where he's going."

 _"Heard that."_ Yugi called from the top of the stairs.

"Quit eavesdropping." Yami returned. He chuckled and felt his heart soar when he caught Yusei trying to hide a small smile. "So what's for dinner?"

"Jaden and I made chicken stew. It started out as curry, but neither of us could remember the whole recipe."

"Don't worry. That's why Yugi usually does the cooking. He never forgets anything. By the way, Joey's here."

Yusei stopped stirring. "I-I think . . . I can meet him. I'll try." He finished in a whisper.

"Just tell me if you get uncomfortable." Yami walked over to the stairs. "Joey, you can come down here now."

The blonde walked downstairs, slowly, and into the kitchen. He may be hyper by nature, but even he knew not to spook this kid. "Hey. My name's Joey Wheeler." He said, remaining by Yami in the doorway.

"H-hello. I'm Yusei. Are you staying for dinner?"

Yami smiled. It looked like Yusei would fit in just fine.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

And the first chapter is done! I would like to thank you all for bearing with me on this. Danger: Attack Cat is still my priority, but I wanted to get this one out. As I said, it was originally uploaded to the Yugioh 5D page, but I switched it because it grows into being more in the Yugioh universe. Please tell me how I'm doing!

NEXT CHAPTER: Yusei has had time to settle in, and tries to thank his new family for taking him in. however, things don't go quite as planned.


	4. Runaway

This is the second chapter! Things will be picking up, so please enjoy! Also, I do not own Yugioh, or Transformers.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

It had been three months since Yusei had moved in. School was now on summer vacation, and everybody was looking forward to sleeping in. Everybody but one.

 _"Brother!_ Big brother, big brother, big brother! Wake up! Why aren't you awake? _Wake up!"_

"Mmm. Yuma, I'm sleeping. Go bother Yusei." The sleepy brunette rolled over, shoving Yuma off the bed.

"I would, but he's not in his room."

"Then check the couch.

"You just don't want to play!" he pouted.

"That's right. I want to sleep."

Across the house, Yugi was also awake. He had gotten ready for the day and decided to let Yami sleep in, as it was his day off. He came downstairs to find Yusei asleep on the couch. "Yusei," he whispered, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder, making him jump.

"Mmm, good morning." He stretched and yawned, reaching the full length of the couch.

Yugi chuckled, getting coffee started. "Didn't last the whole movie night again?"

"Transformers marathon. Sue me."

Over the past few months, Yusei had calmed down a lot around his new family. He was still wary, and would occasionally lock himself in his room, but even he was surprised with how far he'd come. He was now even able to use a normal volume in conversation. The week following his adoption, Yusei had been introduced to almost everyone else considered to be family.

"Why don't you like the Transformers? I would have thought they'd be your favorite movies."

"It's because I'm good with machines that I don't like them. I mean, there is no way that a blender can rebuild itself into a weapon. Yeah, it could be used as one, but a phone, or a car?"

"I guess that would drive you crazy. Speaking of cars, I think my pickup will be getting a lot more use for a while."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Yami's car is going to have to be sold soon. The mechanic says it's unfixable."

"Maybe I could have a look?"

"No. Don't waste your time. He's had the thing since high school. Joey, Tristan, and Anzu have actually started taking bets on when it'll die."

They heard a loud thump. _"Jaden!"_

Yugi sighed. "Well, the calm was nice while it lasted, hmm?"

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Yugi sat on a stool behind the counter in the game store on the ground floor of their house. Jaden and Yuma were in the store room, doing inventory, while Yusei was being shown how to work at the front counter.

"I just got my grandfather to retire about four years ago, and I have been running this place ever since. "

"I never knew this was here."

"I'm not surprised. Orphanages don't really allow very much freedom." Yugi seemed to catch himself, and before Yusei could think any more on it, Yami appeared at the bottom of the staircase leading up to their house.

"Yugi, Grandpa's on the phone. He says he needs to talk to you."

"Well, speak of the devil. When did he get back?"

"He says he's still in Egypt, but it's important that he talks to you."

Yugi nodded. "Yusei, man the counter for me, ok?" he received a nod and headed up to the house.

"Grandpa's as Egyptologist. We managed to get him to retire from running the shop, but, unfortunately, that just left more time for his travels. You'll probably be meeting him soon."

"Does he know about me?"

"Not yet. He has no cell service out on digs, and the satellite phone is only for emergencies."

"Excuse me, do you sell starter packs?" a little girl asked, peeping over the counter.

"Um, that corner. Over there." Yusei directed her.

"Thanks," she replied, wandering towards where he'd directed.

"Anyway, he's a really great guy. You'll love him."

Yusei absently completed the girl's purchase and turned his attention back to Yami. "Do you think he'll like me?"

"Of course." Yami smiled reassuringly.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

That night at the dinner table, Yugi had an announcement. "As all of you know, Grandpa called today. No, he's not back. He is still in Egypt, but tomorrow, Yami, Yuma, and I will be flying over there. Jaden and Yusei, you will stay here."

"Why do we have to stay behind?"

"Because someone has to run the shop, and we can't afford to spontaneously fly five people halfway around the world. The only reason Yuma's coming is because he's too young to stay behind."

Yuma piped up at that. "Why do we have to go?"

"Because Grandpa says it's important that Yami and I are there. For what, he refuses to say." Yugi finished, and then turned to Yusei. "Do you have any questions?"

"How long will you be gone?"

"One week."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

"Are you sure it's a good idea to leave Jaden and Yusei home alone for a whole week?" Yami asked Yugi, who was currently folding and packing light T-shirts for himself and Yuma.

"Grandpa said we both need to be there, and Joey, Seto, and Anzu are all just a phone call away. They're fifteen and sixteen. They don't need to be babysat."

Yami sighed. "You're right. I know you are, but I just can't help but worry."

"About Yusei, you mean?" Yugi paused, looking up.

"Yeah. But it's not just that. I've got a funny feeling you know? Like somethings about to happen."

"You and your feelings." Yugi shook his head.

"Have they ever been wrong before?"

Yugi lost himself in his thoughts for a moment, and then lowered his head. "No." he said, closing his eyes. "No, they haven't."

Yami clenched his jaw, silently berating himself. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring that up."

"No, it's alright. That part of my life is done." He was going to say something else, but at that moment, Yuma bolted in with a sleeping bag.

"I'm all ready to go! C'mon!"

"Yuma!"

Yami left the room, smirking at the boy's antics. Then he frowned. Yugi had always teased him about his sixth sense. But he knew that the laughter was false. Only show. If Yami thought he was fine, he wouldn't worry. 'Of course I worry.' Yami thought, 'I was the one who found him.' He'd gotten a bad feeling when they were both still teens; it had lad him to saving Yugi's life. 'I just hope I'm worrying about nothing this time.'

"Are you okay?" Yusei's timid voice brought him out of his thoughts.

"Hmm?"

"You were scowling."

"Sorry. I was just thinking."

"Oh . . . okay."

"Are you sure you boys can handle yourselves here for a whole week? I can get Joey to stay over."

Yusei looked uncertain for a moment, and then shook his head slightly. "If it's my choice, then I'd like to stay here with Jaden."

"Alright. You have the number where we'll be. And you also have Seto, Joey, and Anzu nearby if anything happens. Not to mention that Ryou and Bakura will be getting back from vacation in about six days."

"I know. Stay safe."

Yami chuckled slightly. "Thank you. I plan to. Take care of yourself and your brother."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Yami, Yugi, and Yuma had left not ten minutes ago, and Jaden was already regretting their decision to leave the two boys alone together. "Yusei," he moaned. "Normal teens would be watching TV and eating junk food right now."

"I'm not hungry." Came the reply.

". . . Video games?"

"We have single player."

"Can we listen to the radio? I'll let you pick."

"I'm going to be down in the garage."

"I'll move the radio down ther- . . . wait. Why are you going to be in the garage?"

This was what Yusei had been hoping to avoid. "I think I may be able to fix Yami's car."

"Whoa, really? But the mechanic said it was dead."

"Yami never got a second opinion. And I have a friend who used that guy once. He said the guys a rookie. Talks technical so customers believe him, knows the basics too, but for real problems, he has no idea what he's doing."

Jaden was wide eyed at what Yusei was insinuating. "You think Yami's getting scammed?"

"I'm going to find out."

"Can I help?"

Yusei looked uncomfortable. Machines were his meditation. Something that could seclude him away from the rest of the world. "Um, all I really need would be for you to not tell anyone what I'm doing."

Jaden smirked. "Don't worry about it. My lips are sealed. I just want to see if you can really get the old thing back up and running."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Things are going to pick up here, and we will be able to see a bit more of Yugi's past. Will he be able to connect to Yusei on a level nobody else has before? Thanks for reading, and please review!


	5. Runaway Pt 2

Please read and review! I would really love feedback on how I'm doing on this story, as it was not easy to write, so please let me know how I'm doing. What do you think about the characters? Or the plot? What do you think is going to happen next? Let me know!

yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

The next morning found Jaden in bed, relishing being able to sleep in. no Yuma, and no school meant he could sleep till noon and nobody could say anything. 'Not even a certain big brother,' he thought to himself. 'Nope, not going to get out of bed. Not for anything. I'm perfectly happy just lying here.' He glanced at the clock. 7:00. "Great. I'm bored." He stared at the ceiling for a second, and then got up.

He went down stairs and heard Yusei down in the garage. 'Has he been down there all night?' Sneaking down the steps, he spotted the teen; black hair messy, face and clothes stained with grease, bent over the engine, smiling. Not the small, quick smile he'd show around people, but a quiet, steadily there, smile of someone without a care in the world, who was doing what they loved most. "You're having fun, aren't you?"

Yusei jumped and whirled around to face the intruder.

Jaden held his hands up in front of himself. "Whoa, sorry. Didn't mean to startle you."

"It's okay. I didn't hear you come in."

"Have you been down here all night?" Yusei glanced back at the engine, a light blush on his cheeks. "I'm not upset, but you are coming up for breakfast now. Omelets are about the only thing I _can_ make, anyway." He was about to turn around, when he noticed Yusei hesitate. "After breakfast, you can come back down on the condition that you some sleep today. Deal?"

"Deal."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

The boys were just about done eating when Jaden spoke up. "So did you find out what's wrong?"

"Yeah, I can fix it. I found some things down there that I can use, but I think I may need to stop by the hardware store for a few parts. I have some money saved up, so I'll just use that."

"If you're sure. You're going to be done by the time they get back, right?"

"Yeah. It's an easy fix. Just some old parts to replace."

"Okay." He watched as Yusei placed his dishes in the sink. "Hey, Yusei," he called just before the door to the garage closed.

"Yeah?" Yusei poked his head back in.

"I'll be down in a while to tell you to take a nap. Unless you want to take one now . . ." he left it up to him.

"I'll sleep later."

"Okay."

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Before either boy realized it, two more days passed in exactly the same way. Yusei working on the car, the very same car he had entered that first night with Yami, and Jaden having to remind him to eat and sleep. Joey had called a few times to check in, and Anzu had even stopped by with her daughter, Alexis, to drop off some groceries. Yusei had taken the engine out completely by this point, and had discovered a few more problems.

"They're nothing big, all easy fixes, I'll be done in about three days." He told Jaden.

"Alright. Wait. Isn't that around the same time Yami and Yugi are due back?" Yusei froze, his eyes widening slightly. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll be done in time."

Yusei nodded, but got back to work with quite a bit more speed and vigor than before.

Deciding to leave so as not to get in the way, Jaden flopped down on the living room couch to watch cartoons.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

The phone rang. Jaden groaned and rolled over. He sat up and looked around. "Must have fallen asleep." He said to himself. According to the clock, he'd been out for about four hours. He picked up on the fourth ring. "Hello? Sennen residence. Jaden speaking."

"Um,"

"Hi, Yugi."

"What's with that greeting?"

"Dunno. Just trying it out. I guess that's a no?"

"Good guess."

"So what's up?" he shifted, cracking his neck. He really had no idea how Yusei could stand falling asleep on the couch as much as he did.

"Apparently Grandpa wanted us to be there for a grand unveiling of an exhibit he'd found, but the date got moved up, so we headed back a little early. We're at the airport now, just waiting for Seto to give us a ride home."

"You're coming home? Tonight?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry we didn't call you from Egypt, but my phone was dead, and we almost missed our flight. Anyway, how'd you boys do on your own?"

"Oh, uh, we-we're fine."

"Okay, well, we'll see you soon."

"Yeah. Bye." He hung up and stared at the phone for a moment, before footsteps behind him pulled him back to reality.

"Who was that?" Yusei asked, rubbing an eye with his palm. He was apparently taking a break.

"That was Yugi. They're back early."

Yusei froze, his face paling slightly. "I-I," he whispered, almost inaudibly, "I'm going to my room." And he bolted.

"Yusei-" Jaden called, then sighed, flopping back down and rubbing his face. "Goddamnit." He muttered. He heaved a breath, and decided that maybe he could buy Yusei some time. He got up and locked the garage door. Seto never used the garage, and he was just dropping them off, but it was better to be safe then sorry. That done, he locked the door leading down from the house as well. With nothing else to do, he set about cleaning dishes and throwing out empty snack wrappers. Hey, they were teenage boys. Messes were natural. He was almost done when the front door opened.

"Thanks, Seto. And be careful driving home; it's getting dark."

"I will. See you later."

"Welcome back." Jaden saw Yami with the three suitcases, and Yugi holding the sleeping Yuma.

"Just give me a minute. I need to put him to bed."

"Okay, but I need to talk to you when you're done."

Yugi nodded and went upstairs, while Yami eyed Jaden suspiciously. "Did something happen that I should be aware of?" Jaden said nothing, but nodded.

"Alright, I'm back. What did you need to say?"

Jaden eyed them both. Since the phone call, he'd been going over in his head what he would say. "I think Yusei needs you to talk to him. He was working on a surprise in the garage, and it was going to be finished by the time you got back, but, well, you're early. Right now, it's kind of a big mess."

Yami frowned and glanced at Yugi. "I'll go talk to him." He said, and made his way up the stairs.

"By the way, Yugi, I locked the garage. I figured he'd feel better if he knew you aren't going to see."

"That's probably a good idea." Before they could continue, Yami bolted back down, his face pale and worried.

"Yusei's gone."

"What do you mean?"

"He's gone his backpack, clothes, jacket, they're all gone. He's not up there."

"He never came past me. I've . . ." Jaden trailed off, a sudden icy brick settling in his stomach. "The first day he was here, I told him about my rope ladder."

The three of them looked at each other for a moment, unsure of what to do next. It was Yami who took charge. "Jaden, call anyone you can think of for help. Yugi, take the truck and head for the train station, I'll try the river and Crow's house."

"Okay"

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

"Jack? It's me, Jaden."

"What's wrong?"

"It's Yusei. He ran away."

"Ran away?! When? What happened?"

"About an hour ago. He thought he was going to be in trouble. Do you have any idea where he may have gone?"

Jack was silent for a moment, and then sighed. "I-I know where he is. Our friend, Kalin, has his own place. Yusei would stop by there to pick up his motorcycle before he left for good."

"What's his address?" There was silence at the other end of the line. "Jack, please."

" _Is_ he in trouble? If I tell you where he is, will he be punished? For whatever happened? Or for running away?"

Jaden could hear the worry in his voice. Jack was torn between protecting his friend by letting him go or getting him back home. "Jack, I swear to you that nothing will happen to Yusei. We just want him back."

"The next town over, Satellite, he lives on Third Street. You can't miss it; it's the only house with a garage attached."

"Thank you, Jack." Jaden hung up, took a breath, and called Yugi.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

"Thanks, Jaden." Yugi said as he hung up. Ha was about a mile from Satellite, and promptly headed over. He was sure that if a cop had been out, he'd have gotten pulled over.

Cruising by all the rundown, dark houses, Yugi kept glancing from one side of the road to the other, driving as slowly as he could so as to not miss anything. Was that him? No. Damn cat. He saw a few bikes, some broken toys, a dog chained to a tree, a shadowy figure stalking down the street, a dilapidated carport- Yugi quickly glanced back at the shadowy figure.

"Yusei," he called softly. The figure stiffened and sped up. Yugi pulled just ahead of him, parked, and got out. Yusei didn't get any closer. "Yusei, please." He tried, but the boy refused to look up at him. He didn't move, didn't twitch, barely even breathed. Yugi sighed and tried again. "Yusei, what are you doing out here?" No response. "Jaden told us that you had a surprise in the garage for us." Yusei looked up, eyes wary, body tensed to run. We haven't seen it, and Jaden locked the garage. We promise not to look." Wary turned to confusion. "I'll tell you what. We don't need to go down there, anytime soon, so you can have full access to finish whatever it is, alright? All I ask is that you come home." Instantly, he was back on guard. "I promise that you won't be in trou-"

"How'd you know where I was?"

Yugi almost took a step back. This was not the scared Yusei he was used to, but rather a cornered animal, glaring and snapping his words out. It would have been an intimidating image, ruined only by the fact that he was visibly shaking. "Jack. He said you'd come by here to get your motorcycle."

"Please, I-I can't go home." He cursed himself for not being able to hide the hitch in his voice. He'd actually begun thinking of that house as _home_.

"Why not?"

"Yami. He'll . . . he-" Yusei slumped against the truck. They hadn't seen the car. That only meant that the inevitable had been delayed.

"What about Yami?" Yugi questioned softly, trying to calm the boy down. Someone acting out of fear could prove surprisingly unpredictable.

"He's going to kick me out." Yusei's answer was barely audible, but it still shocked Yugi.

"He'd never-"

"He will." There was no emotion in his voice, as if this was something he'd had to live through all too often. "He will. I just wanted to thank him for taking me in . . . but now," he trailed off.

"You're fixing the car, aren't you?" the slump of his shoulders was all the affirmative that was needed. "Yami won't gat mad, trust me. I know how much he loves that car. If there was any chance he wouldn't have to sell it, he'd take it."

"That doesn't change the fact that I took it apart without permission."

"Yusei-," Yugi broke off as something cold and wet hit him in the forehead. "What the-," he looked up and saw that it was raining. "How about we continue this conversation in the truck? We can stay out here if you want, but neither of us has a good jacket on." Yusei didn't say a word; he just stared at the sidewalk. Yugi sighed. "Do you want to come home?" A moment passed before Yusei slowly, almost imperceptibly, nodded. "Jaden and I want you home, too. Tomorrow morning, when Yuma wakes up, he's going to want you home. Do you know what Yami's doing right now?" his head was still bent, hair beginning to stick to his head in the shower-turned-downpour. His blue eyes remained on the ground, face void of any emotion. Yet, deep in his eyes, Yugi could see the faintest glimmer of hope. "He's on foot, checking all the places you may have gone. You can believe he's mad if you want, but you didn't see his face when he found you gone. He's worried about you. He doesn't want anything to happen to you. And to tell the truth, if it's between you and the car, he could care less about a piece of machinery."

Yusei didn't respond, and when Yugi looked closer, he saw why. His head was bent even lower, and he could just make out the beginnings of tears in his eyes. Without a word, Yusei straightened up and turned to walk away from Yugi. Yugi felt his heart drop to his stomach for a split second, until he saw that the boy wasn't leaving; he was walking around to get into the truck.

Yugi allowed himself a small smile of relief, before climbing in himself. He had just shut the door when he heard a small sound from Yusei, and looked up at him.

"S-sorry for the seat, it's getting kind of wet."

Yugi gave a small laugh. "Don't worry. These seats have had a lot worse on them.' He reached for the ignition, and then froze. "I didn't mean that the way it sounded." He said, closing his eyes.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

There is one more part to this chapter! Please tell me how I am doing! What do you think of Yusei and his new family?

NEXT CHAPTER: Yugi tells Yusei a bit about himself, and Yusei shows off another talent.


	6. Runaway Pt 3

I am sorry about the long wait, but here! Enjoy!

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy "You know, something similar happened to me."

Yusei looked up in surprise; the ride back had so far been in silence.

"When I was about your age, Yami was always smarter than me. Like, by a lot. He got accepted to college in America, and Anzu and Joey got it into their heads to throw him a surprise party the night before he left. It had been my job to tell Yami what time to be home, but I got the times wrong. He ended up walking in long before anyone was ready. We were still hanging streamers, setting up balloons; the cake mix was still in a bowl, for crying out loud." He chuckled to himself softly, and then let his face fall. "I thought he'd hate me, so I locked myself in my room. Yami, Grandpa, even our friends, they all tried to get me to open the door, but I just couldn't face him. His plane left the next morning."

Yugi broke off for a moment, steering back into Domino. "It was two years before I saw him again. When he finally came home, the first thing he did was, well-," Yusei looked up, somewhat surprised to see a small blush on Yugi's cheeks. "He hit me over the head with a rolled up newspaper. Then he sat me down and we had a talk. He said he'd never been mad at me."

"He was worried about losing you."

"Yeah. How'd you know?"

Yusei looked at him. "I can see it in his eyes. And in how he talks to and about you. He worries about you."

Yugi gave a small laugh. "Yeah, he can be a bit overprotective." He frowned. "I can't say that I can't see why, though. I haven't exactly got the best history." He broke off, and Yusei could see that he didn't want to continue on the subject. The rest of the ride was spent in silence.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Yugi sat at the kitchen table, waiting for Yami to return home. After such a long day, jetlag was just beginning to hit. He'd sent Yusei and Jaden up to bed (as soon as he was able to pry Jaden off of his brother), and called Yami to let him know that the teen was home safe.

He was snapped back to full alertness when he heard the front door open and close. Yami walked in, soaking wet from the rain.

"Is he alright?"

"Yes. He's upstairs in bed." Yugi responded, pouring a cup of coffee for him.

"He thought he was going to be in trouble, didn't he?"

"Yes. He told me that he was afraid of being kicked out. He really wants to stay here."

Yami took a sip from the mug, and then lifted his head in surprise when he heard an upstairs door softly close, and light footsteps slowly descend the stairs. Yusei peeked around the corner, eyes wary.

Yugi stepped forward. "Yusei-," but he was cut off when Yusei straightened up and strode purposefully to the table. He placed an old, worn sketchbook down and stepped back.

"Thank you for adopting me, and I'm sorry for making you search for me tonight." He then turned and hurried back upstairs.

Yami and Yugi looked at each other for a moment, and then examined the sketchbook. It showed signs of light abuse and much love. The cover was old, worn, and had 'Yusei' printed on it in black sharpie. Most of the pages had been torn out, but when Yugi opened it, his eyes went wide in shock.

It was a picture of him. It looked almost like someone had taken a black and white photo, except for a line that had obviously been erased; trailing off the page from . . . Yugi did a double take. Kuriboh, a small, brown, Duel Monster, was floating above his head. The two of them were apparently sharing a joke, as they both appeared to be laughing.

They turned the page. Yami stared back at them. His expression and posture radiated confidence and authority. His arms were crossed over his chest and he smirked challengingly off the page, leaning back to back with the Dark Magician.

Next page showed Jaden playing what appeared to be a chasing game with Elemental Hero Avian, with Hane Kuriboh clutching his shoulder so as to not fall off.

The last page showed Yuma, sitting on the shoulder of a giant Utopia. A grinning older boy sat on the other shoulder. He looked like he was saying something to Yuma, but whatever it was, was forever lost to a world of paper and pencil.

"Wow," was all that Yami could say. They looked at each other for a moment.

"Y'know, I told him he could have a few more days in the garage."

"I was already planning on it."

YyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyThree days lateryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Yami came downstairs, still rubbing sleep from his eyes. His and Yugi's bedroom were above the garage, in the newer part of the house, so he'd been able to hear Yusei putting the finishing touches on whatever it was that he was doing. Of course, Yami had his suspicions, but he had no way of knowing for sure.

He reached the bottom of he stairs and spotted the limp form of Yusei stretched out full-length on the couch. He smiled and carefully laid a blanket over him. Even in sleep, Yusei's face showed worry, but it was considerably less. Especially now that he knew he was defiantly home. Could someone get a better trial by fire, more proof of a real family, than this boy had had?

Yami smiled, shushing Jaden as he bolted downstairs and out the front door to meet his friends who were just coming up the sidewalk. He went to the kitchen to start breakfast. Pancakes and eggs were being set on the table when Yuma came downstairs.

"Hey, can you go get Yugi or me?"  
"Sure." The boy bolted up to Yugi's room, a bunch of thumps and yells following, before he bolted back downstairs and jumped at the couch, landing directly on its sole occupant.

"Oof!" Yusei woke up instantly and pushed the boy off.

"Are you alright?" Yami asked.

"Yeah. Fine. Could you not wake me up like that again?"

"Okay, sorry." Yuma chirped, than turned the TV on to cartoons. Yusei moved to the kitchen, obviously not completely awake yet, and helped Yami set the table.

"After breakfast, do you want to see?" Yusei asked, picking at his food nervously.

"You finished?"

"Yeah."

"Absolutely."

Yusei finished his last few bites of scrambled eggs, then hurried for the garage. He wanted to make sure everything was in order. He unlocked and opened the big garage door, letting the sunlight in, and picked up a couple of random tools he'd been too tired to deal with the night before. He then went back to get Yami. "Its all ready."

Yami finished putting the dirty dishes in the sink and followed Yusei down. They reached the bottom of the stairs and Yami was surprised to see that the garage looked exactly the same as he'd left it. As he looked around in confusion, Yusei walked up to his old, dead car, got in, and turned the key.

Yami stared. His car, the dead car he's been planning to sell for scrap, was sitting in his garage, running like new. The clunking, whirring, sputtering sounds were gone as if they'd never been there. He looked back at Yusei, and he allowed himself to smile. To grin. Yusei looked happier than he'd ever seen him. Happier than when Yugi and Yami had suggested he move his motorcycle into the garage, which was where it was now, sitting in the corner.

Yusei cut the engine and stepped out, looking hopeful.

"You . . . You fixed it." Yami was incredulous. "In one week, you fixed a car."

"Y-yeah. I like working with machines." Yusei stuttered, blushing under the praise.

"My mechanic told me it was dead."

"My friend Kalin told he went to your mechanic a few years ago, and to not trust him."

"Talks a big game but can't back it up?"

"Yeah. If you keep driving it as much as you have been, though, it probably only has a year, maybe two, left."

At that, Yami frowned. "Guess I still need to get a new car, then." He thought for a moment, and then smiled. "Seems like it would be a good first car for someone." He fiddled with the keys. "I take it you won't stop riding that?" He nodded at the bright red motorcycle. Yusei, slightly confused, shook his head. "And I think your brother's matured for such a responsibility." Yami tossed Yusei the keys. "How about you do the honors; hand those down to him."

Yusei looked at Yami, then the keys, then back again, and grinned. Mind registering the duty just gifted to him, he spun to walk out of the garage door.

Jaden, unaware of what was going on, had happened to choose that exact moment to speed by on his skateboard, and crash into the mailbox.

Yusei and Yami froze as the boy got up, yelled a quick, "I'm alright." And chased his still-rolling board down the sidewalk. His friends just shook their heads behind him.

Yusei didn't move for a minute, but then turned on his heel and walked back upstairs. "Hey, Yuma. I got something for you."

Yami chuckled, until he realized that Yusei wasn't kidding. "H-hey! No, stop! Bad idea!" he called, chasing the teen up the stairs. Yusei laughed, playing keep away, while Yugi watched from the kitchen, smiling. At this moment in time, everybody was happy. He couldn't ask or anything more.

Yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

I would like to apologize to everybody or taking so long to update, but things are going to pick up from here on out. I have this thing almost finished on paper, but just need to type it. Also, I am going to send out a great big shout out to my epic and brilliant editor, who can somehow manage to decipher my handwriting, and Tately E DeLaure, for not letting me forget about actually posting what I've written. Thank you and sorry for the wait. :3


	7. Ignition

Mornings in the Sennen household were always an affair. Whether the problem was that someone refused to get out of bed (Jaden, usually), or breakfast was burnt, (the oven had been acting up as of late), the only word to describe it was simply 'chaos'. And this day would be no exception.

"BIG BROTHERRRRR!" was all the warning Jaden got before he was attacked by a flying seven-year-old. Yuma then began jumping on the bed in a vain attempt to rouse the older boy.

Yusei, rudely awoken by the noise, decided he might as well get breakfast started. Ten minutes later, he, Yami, and Yugi were sitting around the table listening to the continued commotion upstairs.

"Oh, by the way, Yusei," Yami said, getting his attention, "you're going over to Jack's house today, right?"

"Yeah. He needs a hand with some mundane project that he refuses to admit he's capable of doing himself. Again." In the two weeks since the car was fixed, Jack had taken every opportunity to 'subtly' check in on Yusei and make sure he was all right.

"I can drive you over now, if you'd like. Seto wanted to see me anyway."

Yyyyy

"I'd like to talk to you about Bruno." Seto barely even glanced up as his cousin walked into his home office.

"You don't mince words, do you?"

"No."

Yami shook his head. "So, what's the problem?"

Here, Seto was quiet for a moment, contemplating how to best phrase the question. "How much do you know about sleepwalking?"

"I know that he's had problems with it in the past, but . . ."

"No, I mean sleepwalking, itself."

"Not much. Why?"

"Is it possible to get someone to stop?"

"Not to my knowledge. Why?" Yami was well aware that the mute teen Kaiba had adopted eight months prior had had problems with sleepwalking on and off.

"He's started up again, but this time, he doesn't just walk around. He'll grab things, move things, just last week, in fact, he took all the blankets off Joey's bed and curled up in the hallway."

"Hmm. I wish I knew what to tell you-,"

"Sorry, don't mind me." Crow walked quickly into the room, over to Seto's desk, and opened one of the drawers.

"What are you doing?" the businessman questioned.

"Nothing. Ah, here it is!" Crow shut the drawer and hurried back out of the room, camera in hand.

Seto sighed. "We'd better go see what's up."

Yami followed his cousin, suppressing a grin when he heard him muttering about 'freeloading thieves'. As they got closer to the living room, though, they were able to make out raised voices.

"Crow! Put that thing down and help me!"

"Jack, stop yelling-Ow! He's choking me! Get him off-," Yusei's voice was cut off by sounds of sputtering and gasping.

"How the hell is he still asleep?"

Yami and Seto hurried in to see Crow snapping pictures (from a safe distance, of course), while Jack was trying to pull a sleeping Bruno off Yusei.

"Yami, help?" Yusei looked at him pleadingly. It took Jack, Seto, and Yami to remove him in the end. As Jack and his dad were putting Bruno back in bad, Yami made a mental note to research more into the boy's problem.

"So, what happened?" He asked, still trying to stifle his laughter.

"Bruno was sleepwalking again and started moving the tools that I was trying to use up to his room. I tried to wake him up, and he just latched onto me." Yusei chuckled sheepishly, and then looked around. "Wait a minute, where did Crow go?" Yami looked around, too, then stooped when he saw Yusei face-palm. "He took the camera, didn't he?"

"Most likely."

"Great."

Yyyyy

Crow pulled his motorcycle to a stop outside a small, ramshackle house in Satellite. He knew that Seto thought of him as just a freeloader, 'And,' he thought, 'I guess I am.' But the truth of the matter was, there wasn't always room at home. As soon as he'd been old enough, he'd bought a small place of his own a few blocks over from Martha's. When she had too many kids in her orphanage, she'd send some to him. On top of that, he also had four full-time roommates.

Was it crowded? Yes. Was it stressful? Absolutely. Did everybody get on everybody else's last nerve? Every single day. Would Crow trade it for anything? Not in a million years.

He paused. 'Okay, maybe sometimes.' He conceded. "I'm home!" He called. Rally, Tank, Nerve, and Blitz came out to greet him.

"What's up? Why are you back so soon?" Blitz questioned. In response, Crow grinned and tossed the camera to Rally.

"Lets just say that it seemed better to temporarily cut and run then stick around for much longer." He walked into the kitchen to start cooking lunch, the sounds of the others 'aww-ing' and giggling in the next room reaching his ears.

Yyyyy

"I don't suppose your magical fixing abilities extend to kitchen appliances?" Yugi asked Yusei, starring at dinner; a burnt lasagna.

"Sorry, no. I fixed a garbage disposal once, though."

Yugi laughed. "Unfortunately, I don't think that will help much right now."

"Yeah. Probably not."

Yugi sighed. "So, now what do we do? You want to risk this?" He gestured to dinner, "Or should I have Yami pick something up on his way home?"

"I think I'd rather have Yami pick something up."

"Okay. I'll call him while you throw that disaster away."

Yyyyy

Later that night, after Yami had brought home tacos for dinner and everyone had gone to bed, Yusei tossed and turned in his sleep.

"No, please . . . stop." His face was covered in sweat and his blanket had wrapped itself around his legs. In his dream, though, it was rope. He was back in his room in his parents' house. He could feel the rope biting into his skin; hear the tortured screams of those unlucky souls they were doing their experiments on. Smell the electrical burning of faulty wiring. No. This was no dream. It wasn't even a nightmare. This was worse. This was a memory of the last night he had spent with his parents before being moved into foster care.

He knew the wires had ignited even though he hadn't seen them. The fire was getting bigger. He could hear it on the other side of the door. The screams quieted, their owners either having gotten out or . . . he didn't want to think about the alternative.

Desperately, he yanked on his bonds again. He tugged and twisted and pulled, blood soaking the ropes. He had to get free. He had to. He just had to.

The voices from down below started up again, only this time, they weren't screaming. They were yelling. At him. Yusei froze and, despite the fire trying to eat through the door, felt his blood turn to ice.

"Free us!"

"Help!"

"Save us!"

But then, other yells.

"Why did you leave us?" Came a demonic voice, almost in his ear.

"You didn't even try!" Another voice, this time behind him.

" _You left us!"_ This one came as a sharp, raspy yell, directly above him.

He jerked his head up, just in time to see a beam falling. It got closer and closer, taking up more and more of his vision, until-,

Yusei gasped and bolted up in bed, heart pounding. He let out terrified, short breaths, and, in order to convince himself it was truly not real, shakily felt all around. Wrists, free of ropes, no cuts or bruises. Walls, cool to the touch. Ankles, still bound by that accursed blanket.

As quickly as he could, which wasn't all that quick, thanks to his shaking hands, he undid the blanket and tossed it to the floor. He then pulled his knees to his chest and placed his face in his hands.

Why had he dreamed of that night? His breathing was gradually slowing, but the effects of that dream were still with him. He kept feeling his wrists, looking at the door, expecting to see a glow under it, smelling electrical burning-,

Yusei stilled. It wasn't in his mind. The stench hung in the air so thick he could taste it. He stood and opened the door. No glow, no smoke, no crackle. Downstairs, though, the smell was stronger.

'No. This can't be happening.' He couldn't pinpoint where the smell was coming from, but it was there. Before he'd even realized he was moving he was opening Yami's door.

"Yami." He whispered urgently.

"Mm." Yami groaned and rolled over.

"Yami." He tried again, a little louder.

Yami didn't respond. Yusei hesitated. He'd always been told to never go into someone else's room unless invited, as it was a big invasion of privacy. His uncertainty, however, lasted only a second. He swallowed, took a breath, and stepped forward.

"Yami." He placed a hand on the older man's shoulder and shook him lightly.

Yami jumped a bit, startled. "Hmn, Yusei?" He asked, voice thick with sleep. "What's wrong?"

"I think we may need to get out of the house." Yusei wavered slightly, suddenly wondering if it _had_ been his imagination.

"What do you mean?" Yami sat up, instantly awake.

"I-I'm smelling burning electricity. I think there might be a fire."

His adoptive father stood up out of bed. "Lets go check it out, then." Yusei nodded and they left the room. As they walked past Yugi's open door, Yami took a quick glance inside. "Looks like Yuma ad another nightmare." He remarked upon spotting two small shapes curled up together.

Yusei smiled faintly at the sight, and then led the way down to the kitchen, where the smell was strongest.

"What is that?" Yusei turned to see Yami's nose was crinkled. "Is that . . ." he trailed off.

Yusei nodded absently. "You never forget it."

They began looking around, trying to find where the smell was coming from.

 **Crack**

Both immediately spun to face the oven.

The sound came again, accompanied by a loud _pop!_

"Yusei, what-," realization hit them suddenly.

" _Move!"_ Yusei yelled, pulling Yami into the staircase. They made just a second before they heard a whoosh of air, and the oven exploded.

Yyyyy

Wow. So sorry this took so long to update, but here it is! And, if I might add, this story has been completely finished on paper, and I am now working on the epilogue. YAY FOR ME AND MY AMAZING EDITOR! (And, for anyone who wants to guess, there is a reason for the exploding oven.) Don't forget to review! :3


	8. Ignition Pt 2

The kitchen was quickly engulfed in flames. Yusei and Yami stood frozen in ear for just a moment.

"You get Yugi and Yuma! I'll get Jaden!" Before Yami could react, Yusei was already sprinting towards the staircase on the other side of the house, being careful to avoid the flames. Yami turned and ran back up to Yugi's room.

"What's going on? What was that noise?" Yugi was already out of bed when Yami got there.

"There's a fire downstairs! We gotta go! Hurry!" Yugi picked up Yuma, who was miraculously still asleep, and ran, pausing only long enough to pocket his phone. "Lets go!" The three made it down the stairs and out the front door.

"Hello?! Yes! I need the fire department!" Yami could hear Yugi yelling into his phone. He looked around the street but saw, to his mounting worry that the boys weren't out yet. "Yami, the fire department is on their way!"

"Something's wrong." Yami muttered. "They should have been out by now."

Yyyyy

Yusei bolted up the stairs, desperate to reach Jaden's room. "Jaden, come on! Lets go!" Jaden, who had already gotten out of bed, was slowly backing into the corner. His eyes were terrified, and he was staring unseeingly at the doorway Yusei had appeared in.

"I smell smoke." He muttered worriedly.

"There's a fire downstairs. We-,"

" _No!"_ Jaden sank down, hands clutching fistfuls of hair, eyes squeezed shut. Yusei blinked in surprise. "No, no, no, no, no." Jaden kept repeating to himself, rocking back and forth.

Yusei turned and looked back down the stairwell. The fire was spreading. "Jaden, please." He coughed. The smoke was getting to him. "We need to get out of here. Where's your ladder?" He placed a hand on his brother's shoulder, trying to bring him back to reality.

"Hid it. Scared you'd run away again."

"Where did you hide it?"

Jaden just shook is head. "Don't remember."

"Jaden, please. We need to get out of here."

"NO!" He was panicking now, his breath coming out in quick gasps.

"Jaden, Jaden, calm down." Yusei thought desperately. The smoke was starting to make it hard to breathe. There was no time to search for the ladder. The only way out was the front door. "Jaden, listen to me. I . . . I've got a surprise for you, okay? You just need to trust me and keep your eyes closed. Can you do that?" Jaden's body stopped rocking, but he was still curled up tightly. "Yeah, come on. I want to show you. Just keep your eyes closed."

Yusei wrapped his arms around Jaden's shoulders and helped him stand. They made their way out of the room, down the stairs, and towards the front door, Yusei talking in the scared teen's ear the entire time, saying anything he could think of to keep him relatively calm.

"Try not to breathe in the smoke. Yugi just burned dinner again." Or, "Careful where you step, Yuma's toys are all over the floor." He wasn't even sure how much of what he said was for his own benefit versus his own. "We're almost there. Just a little bit farther. Keep your eyes closed." He just had to get them out. Each breath was painful and he had to fight his instincts to run at every step. He wasn't leaving anyone behind this time. Every time Jaden froze, Yusei had to talk him into moving again. 'But,' he told himself, 'that's what big brothers do.'

Yyyyy

"There are still two boys in there!" Yami yelled as the fire trucks pulled to a stop.

"Do you know where they might be?"

He turned and pointed. "That side of the house, there's a room at the end of the hall, on your left!"

The man nodded. "Tsuzuki, Hirano, get in there!"

Two men went to go inside, but at that moment, the door opened and Yusei and Jaden stumbled out.

"Oh, thank Ra." Yami sighed before running over and helping the firemen lead the two away from the burning building.

Yyyyy

 _Ring ring ring_

"What?!" Jack barked into the phone. It was . . . two a.m. Seriously?! Whoever was calling him had better have a damn good reason.

"Jack? I can't get through to Seto's phone. Can I talk to him, please?"

" . . . Yami? Why the hell are you calling at two in the morning?"

"We just had a house fire. I need to know if he can take at least a few of us in until we can get everything repaired."

Jack blinked. "What?" He was suddenly wide-awake. "I-is everyone alright?"

"Yeah, yeah. We're all fine. Yusei got everyone out."

"Yusei-," he paused. "is he . . . alright?" Jack was almost scared to hear the answer.

Yami hesitated and sighed, causing a lump to form in throat. "Yusei and Jaden are being checked out for smoke inhalation. Yusei seems a bit shaken up, but other than that he's fine."

"Okay. We'll be right there." Jack hung up and bolted down the hall to Seto's room, not even bothering to knock. "Dad! Wake up! We gotta go!"

Seto jumped, then, upon realizing the intruder was only Jack, jammed a pillow over her head. "Do you realize how late I got to sleep?" He growled.

"Yami just called. Their house caught fire."

"What?"

"Their house caught fire! Now lets go! Come on!"

Yyyyy

Before Seto could even pull the car to a complete stop, Jack was out the door and running past the fire trucks. He saw Yami talking to a few firemen, Yugi on a nearby bench holding a sleeping Yuma . . . All of the sudden, his eyes landed on an ambulance. Yusei was sitting on the back step of it, rubbing Jaden's back.

"Yusei," Jack called.

Yusei raised his head and locked eyes with Jack. Silently, he stood and made his way over, never once taking his eyes off of Jack's. When he was only arms distance away, though, he paused. His gaze dropped slightly and his jaw quivered.

"Yus-," Jack was cut off as Yusei took the final step forward and latched onto him, burying his face in Jack's chest. Jack carefully wrapped his arms around him, feeling for the first time how small he actually was. His thin shoulders shook with silent sobs and the blonde felt his shirt grow damp. "Shh, Yusei. You're okay. You're safe."

"I didn't leave anyone behind. I didn't run away. I didn't let anyone . . ." Yusei was muttering into his friend's chest, seemingly trying to convince himself.

"Everyone's safe, Yusei. Shh, shh. Everyone's fine." Jack rubbed his back, letting him cry and whispering words of comfort until he had calmed down. "You're going to come stay with us for a while, alright? Just until-," Jack broke off as Yusei let go and stepped back. "Yusei?"

"I . . ." Yusei was still shaking a little, and he kept his gaze trained on Jack's shoes. "I . . . no." His voice shook, but he managed to say that one word firmly.

"Jack blinked. "W-what?"

Yusei shook his head, but didn't look up. "No." He swallowed, trying to get his confidence to hold his ground. "Y-you told me once that family . . . being a real family . . . means that you're a family during the good and the bad, and you don't abandon them when things aren't good." Yusei fell silent and Jack stood there, staring in surprise. He had told Yusei that after being returned by a couple about eight years prior. Yusei, he noticed, had begun to shake even worse. For a moment, Jack was worried he was the reason. That Yusei was afraid he'd made Jack mad by refusing his offer.

Then he noticed what was probably the real reason. It was less than fifty degrees out, and Yusei was wearing only a thin tank-top and a pair of light sweatpants. Jack shook his head and took off his white trench coat. Ignoring Yusei's look of confusion, he draped it around his shoulders and led him over to where Yami and Seto were talking. Yusei stuck his arms through the sleeves and suppressed a small groan when his fingers came a few inches from the ends.

"We have enough spare rooms to take you all in." Jack announced, then turned back to his shorter friend. Happy?"

Wordlessly, Yusei nodded.

"Well," Yami looked at Seto, "I guess that takes care of that."

Yyyyy

Yusei raised a fist to knock, then clenched and lowered it. For the second time that night, he found himself standing outside someone's room, debating. He let out a frustrated sigh and jammed his hand through his hair, brushing it out of his eyes. Just as he was about to turn and walk off, though, the door opened.

"Jack."

"Are you going to stand out in the hallway all night?"

Yusei was silent, suddenly rethinking his reasons for being up at such an hour.

"What's wrong?" Jack asked softly.

"Every time I close my eyes, I'm back there." He tried to blink back tears, but this time, there was no adrenaline to keep them at bay. "I took two showers and can still smell the smoke. Every time I try to sleep, I just hear them screaming at me." His voice dropped to a haunted whisper. "Blaming me for leaving them."

"You had no choice-,"

" _I know_ , Jack. I know. You've been saying the same thing for over a decade now." Yusei broke off, letting a few tears fall. "I know I couldn't save them." Jack had to lean in slightly to hear him. "You wouldn't understand. You've never let anyone down before." That was all Jack needed to hear. Before Yusei could react, the air was forced out of his lungs as he was caught in a bone-crushing hug.

"I have, Kid. I have, and not a day goes by that I don't beat myself up over it." Jack whispered. Yusei managed to shift slightly so that he could return the hug. Ever since he was young, no matter the situation, Jack could always make him feel safe. "I let you down." Jack murmured.

Yusei blinked in surprise, not sure what he meant.

"I should have found a way to protect you all those years."

"You did more for me than most people. By a lot." Yusei reassured him.

"But it wasn't enough. You should've-," Jack broke off as Yusei coughed slightly. He was brought out of his self-berating rant suddenly, remembering Yami's words; ' _He and Jaden are being checked out for smoke-inhalation."_

Jack unwrapped his arms and placed his hands on Yusei's shoulders, pushing him away just enough to get a good look at him. Yusei looked up at him in confusion. "How long were you in that house?" His voice was even, but Yusei had known him long enough to hear the concern hidden beneath it.

"N-not that long." He tried.

"How long is 'not long'?" Now that Jack was paying attention, he could see that Yusei was a few shades more pale than normal, and every now and then his breath had a strange hitch.

"I don't know. Maybe five minutes?"

"What did the paramedics say?" Jack felt his forehead.

"They said I'll be fine and to get a good night's sleep." Yusei pushed Jack's hand away. The boys stared at each other in silence for a minute, before Jack sighed.

"Come on, then." He placed a hand on Yusei's back and led him into his room. "You said you couldn't sleep, right?" The older teen responded to the unspoken question. "I'll chase away the bad dreams."

Yusei smiled quietly. Jack always knew how to make him feel safe.

Yyyyy

I'm sorry for the wait, but here is the next chapter! Major thanks to my guest reviewer, PipeDream, for all of your reviews! I couldn't stop smiling and am working on that AN for Brothers, and the next chapter for In The Dark.

Hope you all liked this, and please review!


	9. Gone

The morning after the fire, Yuma was the first one up. Nobody was sure how, but he hadn't woken up once during the whole night. Because of this, and the fact that he was blind, Yuma was unaware of the change in houses. He sprinted down the hall, mentally counting the steps to the stairs.

' . . . two . . . one . . . ste-,'

Yuma lay stunned in the middle of the hallway. 'Where's the step?' He thought to himself. Slowly at first, then more and more frantically, he felt around for the stairs. "Daddy! Yugi! Wake up! The house ate us! The stairs are gone!"

Awakened by the noise, Joey walked up behind him. "Yuma? What are you doing here?"

The boy froze, and then continued. _"Joey got eaten with us! Help! He-,"_

"Yuma!" Joey interrupted. "You weren't eaten. You're in my house."

Once again, the boy froze. "I'm where? How'd I get here?"

"I have no idea." Joey looked up and down the hallway as if to find some explanation as to why his friend's son had suddenly appeared.

As if on cue, Yami walked out of a guest room, blearily rubbing his eyes. "Yuma, stop screaming, please. Its too early."

"Okay. Sorry. I'll go wake up Bronk." The boy took stock of where he was, recalculated the steps, and ran off the other way.

"What the heck are you doing here?" Joey was really confused now.

"Jack and Seto let us stay. There was a fire at our house last night."

"What?! Why wasn't I told?"

"We got here around three last night and didn't wasn't to wake anybody."

"Did everyone make it out okay?" Joey asked worriedly.

Yami paused, and then closed his eyes. "For the most part everyone's alright, but Yusei and Jaden had a bit of a close call. The paramedics said they'd be alright, though."

"That's good. And Yugi?" Yami had to smile at that. Joey was always worried whenever 'Yugi' and 'danger' were concerned. He shook his head. "Yugi's fine."

Joey sighed with relief. "Well, now that you're here, we may as well start breakfast."

Yyyyy

Thirty minutes later, breakfast was served and almost everyone was seated around the table.

"I'll go get Seto, Yusei, and Jack." Yami headed for the stairs.

Yyyyy

"You're not acting very grateful." Seto grumbled, reluctantly getting out of bed and heading for his wardrobe.

Yami just laughed and walked down the hall to Yusei's room. "Yusei," he called, knocking twice. No response. "Yusei? Breakfast time. Up and at 'em." Still no response. By this time, Yami was getting worried; Yusei had always been a light sleeper. "Yusei?" He eased the door open a bit, then all the way. The blanket on the bed was slightly rumpled, but that was the only sign that anyone had been in the room. Yami sighed and slumped against the doorframe. "Please don't let him have run of again." He muttered.

"What's wrong?" Seto walked up, straightening his tie.

"Yusei's not in his room. I hope he didn't run off again."

Unfazed, Seto pointed a little ways down the hall. "He's slept over a few times over the years, and always ends up with Jack whenever he needs comforting."

Yami nodded. "Thanks, Seto." He took two steps down the hall before he was stopped.

"Thank you."

He turned in confusion. "For what?"

"Taking him in. I considered doing so myself, but," he broke off and gestured around them, "this isn't the kind of environment he needs." Yami just nodded mutely. "When they contacted me about adopting him, I almost did it. Jack wanted more than anything for him to live here. I recommended having you look into his case instead. He wouldn't have been able to survive here."

"Well then, I guess I should thank you." Seto raised an eyebrow, asking for elaboration. "For introducing him to our family." The two smiled briefly at each other, and then went their separate ways down the hallway.

Yami reached Jack's door and slowly cracked it open. Yusei was sound asleep under Jack's arm, curled into his chest. Both boys were breathing in sync and Yusei's head was tucked under Jack's chin. For the first time, Yami saw Yusei's face without any trace of worry, or fear, or anything except peace. He didn't even realize he'd been staring until he heard footsteps behind him.

"Reminds me of when we were their age." Yugi smiled softly.

"Yugi?"

The shorter brother blinked, and then shook his head. "Forget it."

"Yugi-," he tried again.

"The fire department chief called. He said the kitchen is a total loss, but we can go grab whatever we need from the house before repairs begin. Joey offered to drive me down."

"Alright. Are you taking any of the boys with you?"

"I don't think so. Yuma's too rowdy, and I'm not so sure Jaden and Yusei will be very eager to go back."

Yami nodded. "You're probably right."

"If there's anything you want me to get for you, make sure you let me know."

"Yeah." Yami grabbed Yugi's arm before he could walk away. "You know you can't hide anything from me, right?"

Yugi was silent.

"Yugi, please. I can tell something's wrong. What is it?"

" . . . It's nothing, Yami." He whispered, suddenly not sounding so confidant.

"Yugi-,"

"I gotta go. Joey's waiting."

Yami sighed and let go. "I'm here if you need me."

" . . . I know." Yugi turned and left without another word.

Yyyyy

"Man. Would you look at that." Joey leaned into the kitchen, now blocked of with yellow caution tape, to examine the damage. The stove, or rather, what was left of it, was burnt and twisted. The wall and surrounding cabinets were black and there was water damage and burn marks everywhere.

"Yeah." Yugi shuddered. "Lets hurry up and get what we need. I don't want to be here too long."

"Alright." Joey turned away from the wreckage. "You pack what you and Yami need. I'll take care of Yusei, Jaden, and Yuya. Yuma." Yugi laughed as Joey shook his head. "One of you needs a name change." He grumbled as he walked away.

Yugi headed up to his and Yami's rooms. After finding a suitcase under Yami's bed, he proceeded to fill it with clothes, toothpaste, toothbrush, his laptop, and anything else that might be needed. Once he was done, he pulled the suitcase across the hall into his own room. There, he got out the suitcase marked 'Yugi' and began to fill it with his own things. Lost in thought, he failed to hear Joey until he was standing in the doorway.

"Almost done?" Joey asked. Yugi spun around to face him, then sighed. He really was too high strung lately.

"Yeah. You?"

"All done. Yuma's got plenty of stuff in Bronk's room already." He broke off as something on the floor caught his eye. It was just inside Yugi's closet. A small, black, fingerless glove with a symbol on the back. "Yugi," Joey walked over and picked it up, confirming his fears when he saw the symbol was exactly what he thought it was; a capital letter 'D' with horns and a tail. The sign of the Domino Demon. He looked up at Yugi, who was now eyeing the glove nervously. "why do you have this?" Honestly, he didn't want to hear the answer. Just the thought of that guy around someone like Yugi . . . Joey didn't want to imagine what he could have done.

"I keep that to remind myself that people can change." Yugi's voice was blank. Blunt, almost.

Joey couldn't believe his ears. He shook his head and squeezed the glove tightly, before throwing it on the floor. "Get something else."

"What?" Yugi blinked.

"Get something else to remind you. Guys like that, they don't change. Trust me, Yug'."

"You did." Joey almost didn't hear him.

"What?"

"You changed. Remember when we first met? You were running with one of the worst gangs in the city."

Joey straightened up in surprise, more than a little hurt. "I changed because I was able to. I wasn't as messed up as that freak."

"What do you know about him? Just what you've heard? Or have you actually met him?" Yugi retorted.

"I don't need to have met him, Yugi. I've seen what he's done. He earned his name. Guys like that, they don't change. They cant."

Yugi bowed his head and remained silent. Joey took a deep breath to calm himself down. He hadn't meant to snap, especially not at Yugi. When he was sure his voice would come out even, he asked the question he'd been worrying about since he found the glove. "Where'd you get it?"

Yugi didn't move. His bangs covered his eyes. " . . . I've had it since I was fifteen."

"Yugi, where did you get it?" Joey said each word slowly and clearly, frustrated that his friend wasn't realizing how serious the situation was. The Domino Demon was the most infamous gangbanger around. He'd shown up out of nowhere and disappeared just as suddenly, leaving no trace. If Yugi had met this guy, been convinced that he'd changed, who's to say that he wasn't around town still? Sure, Joey had never met him in person, but he had seen people who had; broken, bloody, crying, insisting that Hell had spat out one of it's own just to teach them a lesson.

"Joey, what would you do if you met him?" Yugi sighed, avoiding the question and looking tired and worn.

"If you're worried about him, Yugi, don't. I don't care what he's old you. He's not your friend. Trust me, you'll be much better off if he crawled back down to Hell. Which is where I'm gonna send him as soon as you tell me who he is."

The room fell into silence, Joey's voice still ringing in Yugi's ears.

"He's me."

Joey froze, unable to believe what he was hearing. "Excuse me?"

"He's me." Yugi repeated a little more forcefully.

" . . . What do you mean?" He asked darkly. "Yugi, if this is a joke-,"

"Do I _look_ like I'm joking?" Yugi snapped, staring straight into Joey's eyes.

Joey shook his head. "I-I don't understand. How could you . . ." He trailed off.

"How could I be the Demon?" Yugi finished, then sighed. "I was messed up when I was younger. Nobody was there for me. I got passed from foster home to foster home. I had absolutely nothing. People would take their rage out on me, and I couldn't do anything to stop it. One day I-" he paused, "I don't know what I was thinking . . . I just hit back. He hit me and I hit him back. I just-," he broke off and stared into space. "I didn't stop. People would hit me and I would hit them back. And I got better and better at it. Ushio made me his second in command." He scrubbed at his eyes. "People began to fear me. I told myself that that was good. That I wanted, _deserved_ , to be feared." Once again, they fell into silence. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you." Yugi whispered.

Joey stared at the glove on the ground. Now that he was looking closer, he could see how small it was. His stomach churned. Yugi, the Yugi who'd convinced him to give up the gang life, who'd introduced him to his son, had once been the Demon. The worst of the worst. Now that he thought about it, though, he could remember the little things he hadn't out much thought into at the time. The glint in his eyes upon seeing gang colors on local teens, how he would quickly avert his gaze anytime he saw the Demon's symbol, no matter how added the spray paint had gotten. Even how skillfully he used to patch Joey up when they were younger and he'd get into a fight. It actually added up now that he thought about it.

"I-I need to think." Joey's voice was thick, but he didn't care. He didn't care bout the signs, or the proof, or the confession. He was too confused to care. There was no way that Yugi, _his_ Yugi, and the Domino Demon, could be one and the same. It was impossible.

Yugi's head shot up as Joey walked by him and out the door. "Joey?"

Joey closed his eyes. He hated that Yugi sounded so uncertain, and that he was the reason, but he couldn't turn around. He had to get away. Had to _think_.

"Joey, please." Yugi followed him down the stairs and to the front door, but refused to go any further. Joey didn't care. He didn't look back. He just got in his truck and drove away.

Yugi watched through blurry eyes as Joey's truck got smaller and smaller, before finally turning a corner. Moving on autopilot, Yugi pulled out his cellphone and dialed the one number he could think of at the moment.

"Big brother?" He let the tears fall as he closed the front door. "I need a ride back to Seto's."

Yyyyy

Uh, oh! This isn't going to end well. As if they don't already have enough to deal with. Don't forget to review! And let me know if you have any questions. :3


	10. Gone Pt 2

Yami pulled the pick-up to a stop in the driveway, then got out and hurried inside. "Yugi?" He called. The house remained silent. Yugi had refused to say anything else over the phone. Just that he needed a lift back to Seto's. He hadn't said why Joey wasn't there. He hadn't needed to. Yami could hear it in his voice; something had happened. "Yugi?" He called again, getting no response.

At the top of the stairs, he found Yugi's door wide open, but the sight on the other side chilled him. The room was trashed. The dresser was on its side, the mattress had been thrown off the bedframe, and pictures and trinkets and clothes littered the floor, most broken. And the walls. There were several holes, all about the size of a foot or a fist, around the room. Yugi sat in a corner, the curtains, torn off the window, were right beside him.

"Oh, Yugi." Yami cautiously made his way over. As he got closer, he could see dried tear tracks on Yugi's face, Bruised and bloody knuckles, and the blank, unseeing stare in his eyes. Yami sat down by him, gently placing an arm around his shoulders. "Yugi, what happened? Where's Joey?"

"Gone." He softly replied, his voice hoarse.

Yami sighed and rubbed Yugi's shoulder. "What happened?" He repeated.

Yugi merely handed him a small object. An object he knew all too well. "Joey found out, and he left."

Yami took the glove and set it aside. "Are you all right?"

Yugi was silent for a while, and Yami almost repeated the question, but stopped when Yugi reached for his hand. "I asked Tristan to come home." He whispered.

Yami looked at him in surprise. "What? Why?" Tristan was chief of the Domino Police Department, and currently attending a convention on the other side of the country. For Yugi to ask him to return, something bad _must_ have happened.

"I've been seeing them around more and more over the past month. And when the Fire Chief called, he asked if we'd done any DIY work on the oven, because that's how the fire started; someone messed with the wires."

"Whoa, hey. Back up. Who are 'they'?" Yami cut him off.

"Ushio's gang."

"Are you sure? And you think they started the fire?"

Yugi nodded. "I thought at first that it may have been Yusei, but he's always let us know when he's going to be working on something, ever since your car."

Yami thought for a second. "Do you think they're up to something?"

Yugi hesitated before answering. "Yeah. I think so. I just don't know what."

Yami puled Yugi closer into a tight, one-armed hug. "You're not alone anymore. They won't-,"

"Me not being alone anymore is _why_ I'm worried. What if they try to get to me by going after you? Or one of our friends? What if-," he sighed, "what if they decide to go after the boys?" He grew quiet. "They're ruthless, Yami. They don't care how many innocents they pull into their plans. And I used to be one of them."

"Yugi-,"

"It's the truth, Yami. I used to be the worst there was. The only reason I wasn't in charge of the entire gang was because I never considered attacking Ushio. I'd do anything I was told, never really thinking about the consequences or who I hurt." Yugi rubbed his eyes, desperately trying to hide his tears. "Maybe Joey's right. Maybe I-,"

"Yugi, stop. Whatever Joey said to you, he was wrong. He doesn't know you like I do. And you _have_ changed. For the better."

Yugi stared into space through tear filled eyes. "Let's just get back to Seto's." He whispered.

Yami sighed. "Alright." He knew that he would have to find a way to convince Yugi that Joey was wrong. But with how stubborn Yugi could be, that would also require finding the right time. And Yami had a feeling that time was coming soon.

Yyyyy

For the most part, the ride back was silent. At one point, Yami tried to start a conversation, but his question of, "When do you think we'll find out what they have planned?" was only met with, "Soon, unfortunately." and then stony silence.

Before either knew it, they were pulling into the Kaiba mansion's driveway. Yugi got out and mutely began grabbing bags. He didn't even glance up when Seto came out. He just walked past him and through the front door.

"So what happened? Why did he call you for a ride?" Seto asked as soon as Yugi was out of earshot.

Yami sighed. "You need to have a serious talk with Joey." Seto raised an eyebrow in inquiry. "You, Grandpa, and I aren't the only ones who know about Yugi's past. Joey just found out."

Instantly understanding, his eyes widened. "What did he do?"

"All I could get out of Yugi was that he left." They each grabbed a bag and headed into the house.

"I'll be sure to have a word with him as soon as he gets back home."

"Good. Thank you." Yami excused himself to put his bag away in his temporary room, and then gave Jaden his. Once done, he met Seto back in the living room. As nobody but the two of them were around, Yami filled him in on what else he and Yugi had discussed.

"So anyway, I think it would be for the best if Yusei, Yuma, and Jaden were to stay on the estate grounds, at least until Tristan's back."

"I agree." Yugi joined the conversation, still carrying one bag. "Speaking of which, where's Yusei? I can't find him."

Seto closed his eyes and muttered what sounded like a curse. "He and Jack left half an hour ago to pick up some parts for Jack's motorcycle."

Yugi and Yami glanced at each other, Yami pulling out his phone. Quickly, he dialed Jack's number.

"We really need to get Yusei a phone." Yugi muttered.

"Hello, Jack." Yami turned his attention to the mobile device in his hand. "Listen, I'll explain when you get here, but you and Yusei need to get home." Pause. "Yeah." Another pause. "Okay. See you soon. Drive safe." He hung up and faced the others. "They stopped by Kalin's, so they'll probably be back in about forty minutes or so."

"Alright. In the meantime, I might as well get dinner started." Yugi headed for the kitchen.

As soon as he was out of earshot, Seto turned to Yami. "I'm going to go call Joey."

Yyyyy

An hour and a half. That's how long it had been. Seto was on the couch with his laptop, but had yet to press a single key; a sure sign he was worried. Yugi had taken to pacing by the unlit fireplace, and Yami was standing by the window, redialing.

"You know what? This is crazy. I'm going to go look for them." Yugi grabbed his jacket and swung it on, but before he reached the door, something heavy bounced off of the window.

Seto bolted to the door and threw it open just in time to see two shadowy figures climb back over the front gate. "I have reinforced windows you juvenile delinquents!" He shouted after them.

"What did they throw?" Yugi asked, searching the bushes under the window. After a minute, he stood up with a brick in his hand. He held it up to the light to read the note attached. _You know where to go to get him back_. Yugi felt as if someone had punched him in the gut. 'No.' He thought. 'Please no.' Absently, he heard Yami in the background. Apparently someone had answered the phone.

"Crow, calm down. What hap-," A tense pause. "What do you mean?"

Seto glanced at him, having re-entered the house. 'What's wrong?' He mouthed. The door closed, letting him know that Yugi had followed him in.

Yami didn't reply. Instead, he furrowed his eyebrows. Then his eyes widened and he paled significantly. "Crow, tell me exactly what happened." He demanded, starting to pace. Seto and Yugi could hear Crow on the line, apparently panicking if his tone was anything to go by. "And you're sure he's not there?" Yami wasn't even trying to hide the worry in his voice. There was a moment of silence, then Yami ended the call with a quick, "Okay. Seto will be there soon. Just do what you can."

He stared solemnly at the device in his hands, then turned and addressed his cousin. "Crow says he found Jack near his house. It looks like someone knocked him out." He paused. "Yusei wasn't with him."

Yyyyy

Oh no! Yusei's missing! This can't end well. Please review and I will have the next chapter up (hopefully) soon. :3


	11. Gone Pt 3

Yami and Yugi stood in the doorway watching Seto's headlights pull out of the driveway. "Do you think it was them?" Yami asked quietly.

Yugi closed the door and walked back towards the living room. "No. I know it was them. He handed Yami the note he'd taken off of the brick.

"I'm going to go call the police." Yami said after reading it. He pulled his phone back out.

"Don't." Yugi snatched it out of his hand. "If they catch any hint of police involvement, we'll never see Yusei again."

"Then what are we going to do?"

Yugi remained silent. Then he sighed. "The police won't be any help. We can't do anything." He grabbed his jacket and swung it on. "Let's just hope that Joey was right."

"Yugi? What are you thinking?"

"I'm going home. I need something." He didn't look back as he walked out the door, not even to see if Tami was following him or not. He was, of course.

Yyyyy

Yusei awoke with a pounding headache. He lay still, hoping it would go away, until he realized how hard his bed was. Groggily, he opened his eyes, jerking completely awake when he failed to recognize any of his surroundings. He was lying on the cement floor of what appeared to be a storage room of some sort.

He sat up slowly, trying not to jostle himself too much. All of the sudden, the memories came back to him. He remembered Jack telling him that something was wrong, and that Yami had told them immediately. They had just left Kalin's house when Yusei realized that they were being followed. He remembered Jack yelling at him to fight back, and he had, until one of them managed to get in a cheap shot and knock the older teen out. After that, all the fight that Yusei had flew out the window. He couldn't remember anything else.

"Jack?" He whispered, not wanting to alert his captors. He looked around, squinting in the darkness. Standing up and shuffling forward slowly, he held out his hands to prevent himself from bumping into anything. He made his way over to the shelves, wanting to see if there was anything there to help him escape. Before he reached them, though, he felt his foot make contact with something.

Yusei knelt down; hand cautiously feeling around for what he hoped was his friend. Unfortunately, what met his hand was neither Jack, nor even alive. It was he backpack Jack had lent him for carrying tools.

He unzipped the smallest pocket and withdrew a penlight that he then shined around, finding with a sinking heart that he was alone. Panic clutched his chest and squeezed his lungs.

'Where am I? Why am I here? I don't want to be alone.' Yusei hadn't even noticed the increased speed of his breaths. Barely registered the growing franticness with which he swung the light around. He just had to find a way out. 'Come on, Yusei. Think. What would Kalin do?'

That thought snapped him back to his senses. Kalin. He would know what to do. Kalin always knew what to do. If only he were here. Yusei closed his eyes, trying as hard as he could to imagine what Kalin would do.

 _"Don't focus on what you don't have, Yusei. It won't magically appear. Take what you do have and make it work for you."_ Growing up, Kalin would constantly repeat those words to him as the elder taught him to be a mechanic in their less-than-adequate environments.

'Take a deep breath, Yusei.' He told himself. 'You have a problem, now how are you going to solve it?' Taking a breath to calm himself, Yusei opened the bag and took out what he needed. Then he searched the shelves. 'Perfect.' He thought.

Yyyyy

"Yugi, please. Talk to me." Yami pleaded. They were currently driving towards the stereotypical 'bad' side of Domino, Yugi behind the wheel. He had dressed for a fight, but refused to say a word since they'd left Seto's house. That scared Yami almost more than seeing his brother back in his old outfit. Almost.

His bangs were held out of his eyes with a bandanna, his hands were covered by his fingerless gloves, one of which being the very same one Joey had found, and he had made sure that everything he wore was dark enough to blend into the shadows.

"Yugi, you can't do this. You're just going to be walking into a trap." Yami tried again.

"I'm aware." Yugi replied softly. "But I'm also aware that we have no other option. The longer they wait, the more restless they'll get. They took him to get to me, so I'll distract them while you find Yusei and get him to safety. I don't want Yusei . . . or you . . . involved in my past any more than you have to be." Yugi fell silent. "I know you're worried, and I'm sorry that this is the only way I can think of to save him, but I need you to know that I can do this."

Yami closed his eyes and sighed resolutely. "I know you can, Yugi. I just don't want you to have to."

"Thank you." Yugi muttered. They spent the rest of the ride in silence.

Yyyyy

Seto growled and slammed his hand into the wall. This had been a very trying day, and it didn't look like it would be getting better anytime soon. He was back home, Jack was in his room (awake, thankfully) being tended to by a Kaiba family doctor, and Joey was ignoring his calls.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. If Joey wouldn't respond to a call, maybe he'd read a text. Seto took a moment to collect his thoughts and then began typing.

 _I'm not trying to contact you because of what happened with Yugi. There's been an emergency._

He hit send and waited. Sure enough, a few minutes later his phone began to ring, Joey's name on the display screen. "It's about time." He snapped before the first ring was even completely finished.

"What happened?"

"Jack and Yusei were jumped on their way back from Kalin's house."

"Are they alright?" Seto could hear the worry in Joey's voice clearly.

"Jack was knocked out. The doctor's with him now." He broke off, not really wanting to continue.

"And Yusei?" Joey prompted, sensing something was wrong.

"He's missing."

There was silence on the other end of the line as the two words sunk in. "Have you called the police?"

"No. Yami called me while I was picking up Jack. He told me to hold off on contacting them. Apparently they know who took him and are on their way to get him back."

"They what? Why wouldn't they want the police to know? Who took him?"

Seto hesitated, not sure how Joey would react but knowing he wouldn't like it. "Yugi's old gang. It sounds like they started last night's fire as well."

He heard Joey gasp. "They did what? And you let Yami and Yugi go after them alone? What the hell is wrong with you?" His voice gradually rose in anger.

"I didn't exactly have a choice. Yami called me after they'd already left! And anyway, who are you to talk? If I remember correctly, you're the one who walked out on your best friend!" Seto shot back.

"I . . . I just needed some time to think." Joey sounded almost like he was trying to convince himself. "Where are they?" He asked after a moment, determination in his voice.

"I don't know, Joey. They didn't-,"

"Them call them!" He interrupted. "If I know where they are, I can help them. You can't just walk away from a gang. If he goes in alone, they'll kill him."

"Joey, I already tried calling them. They turned their phones off. I know you want to help. I do too."

"Then what are we supposed to do? Just sit here and wait for the news that we'll never see them again?"

"No." Seto said, a bit more forcibly than he meant to. "We do the only thing we can do. Pray."

Yyyyy

Yami peeked in the window before he reached for the doorknob. When they'd reached their 'headquarters', Yugi had told him to sneak in through the back. His job was to find Yusei and get him to safety. The door was unlocked. He swung it open as quietly as he could, wincing at every little squeak. He entered and paused, letting his eyes adjust to the gloom.

"Oi!" Yami whirled around, tasting terror as he took in the sight of the giant, muscle-bound man before him. "Who the hell are you?" He demanded. Yami took a step back, hands up in defense. The man pulled a knife. "I asked who the hell you are." He growled menacingly.

Sounding a lot braver than he felt, Yami locked eyes with the man. "I'm the father of the boy you kidnapped."

The man paused, and then laughed. "He actually brought you along? The Demon's backup is a scrawny desk-job type?"

Yami curled his lip in a snarl. "Why are you doing this? Why go after Yugi?"

The man stopped laughing, settling on a wicked grin. "Simple. Morale."

"What do you mean?" Yami asked darkly.

"What I mean is, we're expanding he turf. Taking over a couple other territories. What better way to prime the troops, so to speak, than to watch Ushio take out the undefeated Domino Demon?"

"What?"

"Yeah. That's right. And now you're coming with me." He brandished his knife, making sure it reflected in the small amount of light, and moved forward. Yami took a step back and felt the wall prevent him from going any farther.

Suddenly, just as the man was almost close enough to grab him, Yami saw him freeze, straighten up and begin twitching. He remained that way for several seconds, and then fell forwards. Yami barely had enough time to move out of the way before he hit the ground, right where he'd been standing.

Yusei stood right behind the man holding some sort of small contraption. Two lightly smoking wires protruded from the front.

"Yusei!" Yami exclaimed. The boy eyed the man on the floor and cautiously prodded him with his foot. Satisfied that he was out, Yami walked over and examined his son.

"Are you alright?" He asked. Yusei nodded, not looking at him. "What the heck is that?" Yami gestured to the device.

"A homemade Taser. Remind me to apologize to Kalin."

"What? Why?"

"He taught me to build it last year and I may have told him I'd never need to use one, so learning to make it was a waste of time." He smiled ruefully.

Yami let out an amused laugh. "You really are full of surprises." He grew serious again. "We should go." Yusei quickly agreed and moved towards the door. "If we're lucky, Yugi hasn't found a way in yet. You wouldn't believe how long it took me to find an unlocked door."

That hope, however small it had been to start with, was crushed when a tall teenager almost immediately confronted them. He barreled around the corner and latched onto Yami's shoulders, blubbering and pleading for help. Instantly, Yusei yanked him off and had him pinned to the ground.

"Yusei, easy. I don't think he's much of a threat. What's wrong?" Yami's tone was not kind, though. This boy was one of those who had endangered his family. Who were now going to attempt to seriously wound, maybe even kill, his brother.

"Th-the Demon. It's the Demon. He took us out like we were nothing. I-I never thought the rumors were true."

"Where is he?" Yami demanded.

"I-inside. I think he's going after Ushio."

Yami's eyes hardened and he shrunk back as far as he could with Yusei still on top of him. "What's your name?"

The boy looked slightly confused. "A-Alex. Alex Myers. Why?"

"Because I want you to remember this. I know the Demon personally. This boy you kidnapped to lure him here? Him too. We're both very close to him. I have your face memorized and a name like yours, Alex, kinda stands out in Japan. If I ever catch you anywhere near my family again, I will make you pray for death. And you had better hope that he comes out of this unharmed. Because I just may hold you responsible."

And with that, both Sennens ran off towards the fight, leaving Alex Myers alone on the ground, sobbing and swearing to go straight and never break the law again.

Yyyyy

Things are heating up now. What will happen next? Don't forget to review, follow, and favorite before you leave! :3


	12. Demon

Yugi stormed past another supposed 'guard'. When the boy reached for him, Yugi's hand automatically reacted by grabbing his wrist and jerking it. The snap was almost drowned out by the scream. Yugi barely paused. He remembered the layout of this building like the back of his hand. Headquarters of the gang he'd almost died to get away from.

A baseball bat swung towards his head. He saw it out o the corner of his eye. Muscle memory took control once again. Duck. Kick. His attacker went flying. He turned down another corridor and threw open the double doors at the end.

"Finally made it, I see." Ushio smirked, casually standing in the middle of the room. The building had once been built to be an auto repair shop, but now, with its current occupants, the shop area had been converted to a training room.

Yugi scowled. "Where is he?" He demanded.

Ushio smirked and sauntered forward. "Tsk, tsk. Really, Yugi. I thought I trained you better. You _don't_ question me." He lost the mocking humor in his voice for the last sentence.

"I can and I will." Yugi snarled. It had been so long since he'd felt fire in his blood. So long since adrenaline pulsed through his body, tensing his muscles and preparing them to strike and dodge.

"You may well try, but don't expect me to tell you anything. Why, he may not even be here-," Ushio stumbled back, clutching his jaw where Yugi had just punched him. Slowly, he took his hand away from his face, held eye contact, and spat out a bloody canine.

"You're gonna wish you hadn't done that." He growled.

Yugi didn't flinch. "No. I will make you wish you'd never involved my family. You never could beat me and you're not going to start now. And you can be sure that if _anything_ happens to Yusei or Yami I will-," He broke off as Ushio bent over in laughter.

"You're right. I never could beat you at sparring, but you've forgotten something. I never stopped fighting. You've grown soft." Before Yugi could react, Ushio kicked his leg out and knocked him off his feet. Yugi's back hit the ground hard and knocked the wind out of him. Catching it back quickly, though, he rolled out of the way of Ushio's oversized foot and sprang to his feet.

They began exchanging blows, kicks, and dodges, neither willing to back down. Yugi launched a powerful kick to his much larger opponent's stomach, and then planted his foot for a roundhouse kick. Unfortunately, Ushio recovered faster than Yugi expected. Right before his foot made contact, he felt a tremendous blow hit him square in the chest. He once again found himself on the ground, gasping for breath.

"I see I've proven my point. And now, the Demon will die. Forever, this time."

Yugi looked up, feeling cold as he saw the knife in Ushio's hand. 'No.' He thought. 'No, I'm not going to just roll over and die. If I'm down, it's going to be fighting.' As fast as he could, he pulled his legs into his chest and kicked with all his might at Ushio's knee. Once again, a snap and a scream. He went down as Yugi jumped up. Swiftly, he delivered a kick his opponent's huge head that rendered him unconscious.

"You lose. Again." He growled at the still form. He then bent over and tried to catch his breath. His chest still hurt, and Ushio had been right. While he had still practiced, it had been a while since he was in a real fight. While he was doing this, though, he unfortunately caught sight of Ushio's knife. It was covered to the handle in blood. Automatically, Yugi's hand flew up to his chest and he looked down.

'No. This is impossible. I would've felt it.' His hand numbly dabbled in his blood, dripping down into a small puddle at his feet. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he remembered telling Yami how adrenaline was known to numb pain. 'That bastard.'

"Yugi!" He distantly heard someone call for him.

"Yami?" He asked, only dimly aware of how soft his voice was. He clutched his chest, trying to stop the bleeding.

"Yugi!" The voice came again, though it seemed almost farther away. He brought a hand to his head, fisting hair as a wave of dizziness swept over him. When it cleared, he grew aware of hands on him, gripping him tightly.

"Y-Yami?"

"Yugi, I've got you. You're okay." His voice shook as he tried to keep from panicking. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Yusei bundling up his coat to help slow the blood.

"Yami." Yugi said again, trying to get his attention. He felt his legs give out and Yami clutch him tighter, gently lowering him to the ground. "I'm sorry. I don't think…we can go home… just yet."

"It's not your fault, Yugi. Don't apologize. Come on, just stay with me." Yugi only whimpered in response.

"Yami, we need to get him out of here." Yusei knelt, placing his hand on the worried man's shoulder. "I'll drive. I know where the hospital is, and you need to do what you can to keep him stable."

It was all Yami could do to nod. Mutely registering what Yusei said, he gathered Yugi into his arms and stood, trying not to jostle him too much.

"I think this may be a way out." Yusei headed for a door, moving aside the weight holding it closed, and opened it. It led directly to fresh air and freedom.

"Just hang on, Yugi. You're gonna be okay." Yami glanced down, growing worried when he saw how glassy his eyes were. His hands had also gone completely limp and his head lolled against Yami's chest. "Yugi, don't you dare fall asleep. Focus on me, all right? Just focus on me!"

Yusei opened the back door of the car and helped position them in the back seat so that they would be as safe as possible, then climbed behind the wheel. He tried to drive as smoothly as he could, but that was hard to do while speeding. Nobody else was on the streets and he had an emergency, so he made a snap decision. One that unfortunately put a well-timed cop on his tail. He ran a red light.

"Shit!" he cursed under his breath, glancing at the flashing lights in his rearview mirror.

"Yusei, lose him. I'll deal with him later, but Yugi needs to get to the hospital _now_." Yami sounded worried, and when Yusei adjusted his gaze in the mirror slightly, he saw why. Yugi was unconscious.

Squaring his shoulders, and gripping the wheel tightly, he pretended to pull over, but the instant the cop had stopped, he stomped on the gas and sped down a side street. He took a small road the branched off of it, then another, and another, until he could no longer hear the sirens.

Slowly, he let out this breath and steered down the last two streets to the hospital. Thankfully the parking lot was almost empty and Yusei pulled into a spot right by the ER doors. Before the car was even turned off, Yami had opened his door and was running, Yugi in his arms, into the building. Yusei locked the car and followed.

"Please, you need to help me!" The receptionist took one look at Yami, at the small, bloody man in his arms, and paged the on-duty doctors. Two men in hospital scrubs appeared with a stretcher and convinced Yami to release his brother to them. They then disappeared with him into the ER. "He'll be alright." HE muttered as much for his sanity as for Yusei's.

Yyyyy

Joey paced the living room, checking his phone constantly. "Where are you guys?" He breathed. Footsteps came slowly down the stairs and he and Seto made eye contact. "It's been hours, Seto. Where are they? What if something's happened?"

"I'm sorry, Joey. I don't know any more than you." He went to the kitchen to heat up some soup for Jack. The boy had already chased the doctor out and was so upset when he heard that Yusei was still missing that he kept trying to get up and go looking for him. Seto had had to place Bruno in his room just so he wouldn't hurt himself.

"Hey, Seto?" He glanced at Joey, silently letting him know he heard him. "You…" He trailed off and sighed. "You told me that Yusei was taken by Yugi's old gang."

"Yeah? What about it?"

"How long have you known? About his past, I mean."

Seto paused momentarily. "I've known since Mr. Motou first adopted them. I'm sorry, but it's not exactly my story to tell."

Joey nodded in understanding. "I just don't get why he never told me."

Seto silently stirred the soup. "He was afraid of how you'd react."

Joey blinked and then lowered his head in shame. Before he could come up with a response, though, his phone rang. "Yami?" He asked tentatively. Dozens of emotions surged through him all at once.

"Joey."

"Yami, where are you? Is everyone okay?" He heard his friend's breath hitch across the line and fear clutched him. "Yami? Everyone's okay, right? Yugi… he's alright, isn't he?" HR knew in his gut what the answer was, but he couldn't bear to acknowledge it.

"Joey, could you please come down to the hospital?"

He felt as if he'd just been punched in the gut. 'No. No, this can't be happening.' "What? What happened? Why?" He began pacing again.

"I-I just really need someone here, Joey. I'm going crazy alone." Joey could hear him fighting back tears, and that scared him. Yami never cried. About anything. "We've been here for hours and nobody will tell me how he is."

"Calm down." Joey was speaking to himself just as much as he was to Yami at this point. "What happened?"

Yami fell silent on the other end of the line long enough for the blonde to have to pull the phone away from his ear to check if they were still connected. "Ushio. He stabbed Yugi."

Joey closed his eyes, jerkily running a hand through his hair. 'This is a dream. A bad joke. It's not real. It can't be happening. Not to Yugi. This is impossible.' But aloud all he said was; "Hang on. I'll be there in a minute."

Yyyyy

Don't forget to review before you leave! :3


	13. Demon Pt 2

Joey pulled into the parking lot fifteen minutes later. He swallowed hard as he sat in his truck. He wasn't ready for this. To go in and see his best friend in a hospital bed. Especially not after how he'd left things between them. Yugi hadn't told him about his past because he'd been scared of how Joey would react. And all Joey had done was confirm his fears.

Heaving a sigh to steady his nerves, he cut the engine and got out. Slowly, he walked inside the bright building and looked around the waiting area, mildly surprised to find it empty.

"Excuse me?" He approached the receptionist. "I'm looking for a friend of mine."

"And what's his name?" Judy, as her nametag said, set aside a file and got on her computer.

"Yugi Sennen. He was brought in a few hours ago."

"Sennen, Sennen." She scrolled down a ways, and then pointed towards a hall across the room. "He's down there, room 206. It's on the right. He was taken out of surgery about ten minutes ago. His brother's with him now."

"Thank you." He made to walk off, but something occurred to him. "Hey, could you also look up where Yusei Sennen is?"

She glanced back at the screen. "He's in room 204, the one next to Yugi Sennen's. The police just took his statement and, other than mild head trauma, most likely from when the kidnapping took place, he's just fine."

"Thank you."

"No problem." She flashed a reassuring grin.

Joey turned and walked down the hall, stopping outside the open door of Yugi's room.

Yami sat, back to the door, at his brother's side, holding onto his hand. The top half of his bed was inclined slightly, even though he wasn't awake, and an IV was attached to his other hand.

"They said that he lost a lot of blood, but should is expected to make a full recovery." Yami spoke softly, as if not trusting his voice to be able to handle a stronger volume. Joey followed the IV drip back up to the bag and swallowed when he saw the fluid inside was red; a blood transfusion. "I didn't mean to call you, you know. I was panicking and dialed the first number that came to mind." He rose and beckoned for Joey to follow him out into the hall. Once there, Yami stood still, not facing him.

"Yami-," Without warning, the smaller man spun and punched him square in the jaw. "Okay," Joey winced, "I deserved that."

"No." He looked up, surprised to find his friend fighting back tears. "You deserve a hell of a lot more than that. But right now I need to check on Yusei, and I don't want to have security called on me." He sighed, but didn't turn away completely. "Y'know, I don't think you realize just how much you mean to him."

"I know. I'm gonna make it up to him somehow. He's my best friend, and he means a lot to me, too."

Yami shook his head slowly. "That's not what I mean. You're not just his best friend. You're the first real friend he's ever had." He closed his eyes and turned away. "You're the first person who hasn't let him down."

Joey didn't respond, and Yami didn't give him the chance to. He just walked away.

Joey, lost in thought, entered Yugi's room and sat in the recently vacated chair. He reached out for the small, limp hand and gave it a light squeeze. 'I'm here for you now, Yugi.' He thought silently.

Yyyyy

Yami took a second to compose himself before he entered Yusei's room. He quickly found that he shouldn't have waited. A large uniformed man had just finished putting handcuffs on the boy's wrists and was in the process of leading him out.

"Sir, this doesn't concern you. Please leave."

Yami glanced at Yusei, who refused to lift his gaze from the floor. He narrowed his eyes and let the combined stress of the past few days color his voice. "What is going on here?"

"Sir, I told you, this is none of your business-,"

"It sure as hell _is_ my business! My house nearly burned down last night with my family inside, my son was kidnapped, my brother was stabbed, and now you're trying to tell me that this isn't any of my business? That's my son! Tell me why you're arresting him!"

"Sir, I'm just doing my job-, wait. Your son? How…?" The officer looked at Yusei.

"He adopted me almost four months ago, Officer Trudge."

"Okay, maybe you can tell me why he ran a red light, intentionally evaded an officer, and was speeding? It took quite a while for me to track him down." Officer Trudge directed the question at Yami.

"Yes. And you can check in with your boss if you don't believe me. My brother got stabbed and we had to get him to the hospital. The two officers that took our statements just left a little bit ago."

Trudge nodded and removed the handcuffs. "I'll just be a moment. I need to check out your story. Please remain in here." He received two slight nods and left the room, pulling out his cellphone as he went.

The door shut with an audible click, but Yusei and Yami remained silent for several long seconds. "Were you really going to let him take you?" Yami asked at last.

"Officer Trudge has known me for years." His voice shook audibly. "He didn't exactly give me a chance to say anything."

Yami let out a small, quiet, sigh. "You know you didn't do anything wrong, right? I'm not going to let him take you away, and if you get a ticket for your driving, I'll pay it, okay?"

"Okay." Yusei murmured. He still hadn't moved or lifted his head. "Hey, Yami?" He asked suddenly.

"Hmm? What?"

"C-could I…" He broke off and clenched his jaw. "Never mind."

"Yusei? What is it?"

"Just forget it. I'm too old to be asking, anyway."

Yami eyed him for a minute, and then looked out the window. "I still remember the first time I went to a theme park. I was twenty-four. Yugi, Joey, and I went on every ride we could find, while Seto waited outside each one to tell us to act our ages." Yusei looked at him, confusion evident on is face. "What I'm trying to say is, sometimes it's okay to ignore how old you are. It sucks when get to be 'too old' for something. I won't judge you. What did you want to ask?"

The room was once again silent, but only or a moment. "Can I-," he paused. "Can I stop calling you Yami?"

Yami tilted his head to the side, obviously not expecting that. "And what would you call me instead?"

Yusei swallowed. "Dad?" Yami was shocked into silence, and Yusei lowered his head in regret. He knew he shouldn't have asked. Yuma was able to call him that because he was so young. It wasn't appropriate for him, a sixteen-year-old teenager, to do so. "I-I'm sorry. I just-," He was cut off as strong arms wrapped themselves around his shoulders.

Yami was only an inch taller than him, yet Yusei still found himself with his head on Yami's shoulder. "Of course you can, Yusei. I'd be honored."

Yusei closed his eyes an returned the hug, a bit surprised that here, in a hospital, with an officer just outside deciding if he was in trouble or not, was the most safe he'd felt in a long time. He felt home.

Yyyyy

Joey tightened his grip on Yugi's hand when he saw his eyelids move slightly. It had been twenty minutes since he'd arrived and he'd thought a lot about what Yami had told him. After all that thinking, though, only one conclusion could be made; he didn't even know his best friend.

"Yug'? Can you hear me?"

His hand twitched slightly in response. "Mm. Joey?" Yugi muttered, opening his eyes slightly.

"Yeah, it's me, pal. How do you feel?"

Yugi didn't answer, but Joey saw his face change as he recalled the events that led him to his current whereabouts. "Is Yusei alright?" He finally asked.

"Yeah, he's fine."

"That's good." He went to shift so he was looking away from Joey but, in the process, realized where his hand was. "Joey, why are you here?" He whispered, staring at their hands.

Joey remained silent. There was no way to respond. What could he say? That he hadn't meant to leave, or say all those things? Oh, God. All those tings he'd said. Yugi had been right. He didn't know the first thing about the Demon, yet he'd so vocally ranted about sending him back down to Hell.

"I'm here because I was wrong. About everything. I thought about what happened and… I realized something; you're still the same guy. Just because I know your past now doesn't change who you are. I'm so sorry about how I acted-," He broke off as he felt Yugi pull his hand away.

"Please, Joey." Joey looked at his face and was surprised to see tears. He wasn't even facing him as he spoke, opting instead to stare at the wall. "Just go away."

Joey pulled his own hand back and shifted in his seat. "Yug', I'm sor-,"

"Go away." Yugi repeated, this time with more force.

Suddenly, Joey remembered being seventeen, standing in Yugi's bedroom, showing of his favorite switchblade and accidently busting the window. He remembered feeling so guilty standing there still holding that knife. Only this time, there was no hand on his arm. No voice telling him it was okay. This time, Yugi couldn't even look at him. This time, he's hurt his best friend, and he knew that it want 'okay'. And that it might never be.

"I'm sorry." He muttered again, more to himself than to Yugi. He took one last look at the small figure in the scarily white room before he bowed his head and left. Just one door over, he paused. Yugi shouldn't be left alone, and Yami would want to know that he was awake. He reached for the doorknob, but paused when he felt his jaw give a twinge

'Aw, come on, Joey. What's wrong with you? This is about Yugi, not you.' He shook his head and opened the door. "Yugi's awake. I-," he paused, "I'll be leaving now." And with that, he walked away. He didn't spare a glance at the receptionist, barely even noticed the glass doors, and climbed back in his truck.

But he didn't leave. He just sat there and let the entire days emotions hit him all at once. He sat there and cried.

Yyyyy

Review and let me know how I did! :3


	14. Demon Pt 3

Yami lay awake, listening to Yugi's breathing. It had been three days since their house had caught fire. Two days since Yusei's kidnapping and Yugi's stabbing. And only a few hours since he'd been allowed to return home. Or rather, to the Kaiba mansion. Yami had set up another bed in Yugi's room to keep an eye on him.

He sighed, remembering how Jaden and Yuma had reacted when they found out what had happened. The entire time Yusei had been kidnapped, up until Seto was sure they were all safe, Roland, Seto's right hand man, had been under strict orders to keep the two boys occupied.

The next morning, when they'd visited at the hospital, both had had to be reminded several times to be gentle and not hug too hard. Yusei had been released that morning and was allowed to return with his brothers. Yami smiled at that. According to Seto, the first thing he had done upon arriving at the mansion was locate Jack. The two hadn't left each other's sides since.

He relaxed and drifted off. Maybe, just maybe, things would all work out in the end.

Yyyyy

The next morning found Joey aimlessly wandering the halls. He had been trying to give Yugi his space lately, and ended up thinking even more. What _had_ he been thinking when he'd left? He had been hurt that Yugi didn't trust him enough to tell him. He hadn't considered that Yugi was just as ashamed of, if not more than, his past than Joey was.

He was brought out of his thoughts rather abruptly as he heard a hiss of pain. He stopped and looked around. Without realizing it, he'd wandered down the hallway containing everyone's bedrooms. The door to Yugi and Yami's room was open.

"Yug'?" he stepped into the doorway, cringing slightly at the sight of Yugi, shirtless, attempting to change the bandages that were wrapped around his chest.

Yugi looked up, and then quickly averted his eyes, gazing fixatedly at his legs.

Joey sighed and walked into the room, slowing when he saw the smaller man tense. Silently, he eased himself down on the bed and took Yugi's hands in his own, being careful to avoid the knuckles. He took the bandage roll and shifted so that Yugi's hands were resting on his shoulders, out of the way. Yugi didn't show any resistance.

Joey undid the last of the gauze, and then peeled off the pad hiding the stitches. He looked away as quickly as he could, throwing the used material in the trash.

Yugi didn't move, hands still resting on Joey's shoulders. He watched as Joey skillfully rewrapped his wound. Watched as he attached the end of the bandage. Watched as he refused to look up. To make eye contact.

Done, Joey placed everything back on Yugi's bedside table, trying not to pay attention to the lump in his throat as the smaller man pulled his hands back. They sat in silence, Yugi absently feeling his chest, until Joey wrapped his arms around him. He pulled him into his chest and buried his face in Yugi's hair.

"I don't want to lose you." He mumbled. And, to Yugi's surprise, he realized he heard his voice waver. Was Joey…crying?

"J-Joey?"

"Please, Yug'. I know I do stupid shit and all, but please, God, I don't want to lose you."

"Joey." Yugi gently wrapped his arms around his friend's shaking body and sighed. "I'm not angry. I probably would have reacted the same way had our roles been swapped. I just…I guess I just needed some time to think as well. I should have told you who I was. You shouldn't have found out the way you did. I'm sorry."

Joey just held him closer, not wanting to let him go again. "From now on, Yugi, don't you dare try to fight your battles on your own. Especially against someone like Ushio, alright?"

Yugi closed his eyes. "Yeah. I promise. Thank you, Joey."

"I'm always here for you, pal."

Yyyyy

"Yeah, okay…Thank you." Yami hung up and turned back to Yugi and Yusei, who were seated in the kitchen. "That was Tristan. He says that they managed to find Ushio and the members of his group that attacked you and Jack. He's also dismissed your ticket due to the circumstances."

"I'm sorry to have caused you so much trouble, Yusei." Yugi smiled softly.

Yusei just hung his head. "I guess this is as good a time as any, since Yugi's past has been brought to light."

Yugi tilted his head to the side as Yusei walked past him. "Good time for what?"

In response, Yusei picked up a hand towel and ran it over his cheek, all the way from his eye to his jaw. When he pulled it away, a yellow, jagged streak was left behind. A criminal marker. "I don't want you finding out about this later." He mumbled.

"Yusei." He looked up to see Yami, unfazed, staring at him. "We know about your past in the Facility. It was in your file." He took a step forward and removed the hand towel from Yusei's hold. "I wouldn't let someone near my family if I wasn't positive they were safe. Just because you did time, that doesn't mean you're violent or unstable. You were thirteen, Yusei. You just needed someone to be there for you."

The three of them remained silent for a moment before Yugi spoke up. "Hurts like hell, doesn't it?" He received a confused look from the teen. "Your mark. When they put it on."

Yusei nodded. "Yeah. How…"

"I've got more experience than you think." He took the rag from his brother and ran it over his own cheek, then his jawbone and forehead. "It doesn't mean you're a bad person. But, unfortunately, it does make you ineligible to adopt."

Yusei closed his eyes and nodded. He was well aware of this fact.

Yami, sensing that Yugi had more to say to the boy, silently excused himself.

"You know, one of the main reasons that Yami decided to adopt you, not that he'll admit it, was because you remind him of me. Wow. That sounds way more narcissistic then I thought it would." He laughed lightly and Yusei gave a smile. "Let me start at the beginning." He thought a moment, the smile leaving his face. "I know this was a bit before your time, but have you ever heard of the Motou Murders?"

Yusei tried to remember. "They sound familiar." He took in the downcast expression on Yugi's face and realized what he's probably meant. "Were your parents…victims of theirs?" He whispered.

Yugi snorted with slight derision. "Victims? No. My birth name is Yugi Motou."

"You mean…"

"Yeah. And they wanted to make it a family business. I flatly refused to have anything to do with it, though."

Yyyyy

Joey made his way down to the kitchen. Just before he opened the door, though, he paused.

"My birth name is Yugi Motou." he heard Yugi say.

Silently, he leaned against the door. He knew it was wrong to eavesdrop, but after hearing _that_ , how could he not?

Yyyyy

"They tried to get you to k-kill?" Yusei was incredulous.

Yugi nodded mutely. "Yeah."

"Did they try to get Yami to…do that too?"

"No. Yami is my older brother through adoption. I hadn't met him yet. I was put in an orphanage when I was eight. My parents had gotten caught but, unfortunately, that's where my problems began. One of the girls that was at the same facility as me was there because of my parents. Needless to say, she hated me. I can't say I blame her, but little kids tend to follow the leader. She got everybody else to hate me, too. I guess I just grew sour towards everybody over the years. That's kind of where we differ, actually."

"What do you mean?" Yusei asked.

"You tried to avoid harassment by going away, if your record of attempted runaways is anything to go by. I tried to make everybody else go away. When I was about thirteen or fourteen, people began…physically…picking on me. Tripping me, shoving me, then punching and kicking. People would take out their rage on me. It all got to be too much, and one day, I just snapped. They all kept saying that I was no better than my parents," Yugi paused, "so I decided to prove them right."

Yugi stopped talking and Yusei knit his eyebrows wearily. "You mean…you…" He gestured towards his neck, not wanting to say anything out loud.

Yugi got what he was asking and his eyes grew wide. "No, no, no. I didn't kill him. I just…" he dropped his head, "kinda…beat him up. He hit me and I hit him back. And I just…I didn't stop." They sat in silence for a minute, Yugi thinking how best to continue, and Yusei out of respect. "It happened a few other times, and pretty soon it had become my first response. Someone put their hand on me, I swung. Someone tried to trip me, I kicked. Someone insulted me, well, I laid them out flat. I didn't care who I hurt, I just wanted them to stop hurting _me_." He paused to take a drink of coffee, old memories flashing behind his eyes. "Apparently, Ushio had started keeping an eye on me at some point. One day, he came up to me. Offered me a spot in his gang. The way he sold it made it sound so wonderful. I was skeptical, but accepted anyway. Stupidest decision I ever made, joining a gang."

"That's kind of, well, it is, how I got my criminal marker. Jack, Crow, and I were in a gang with our friend, Kalin. It was just the four of us, but we ended up getting into a lot of trouble. Crow got sent to the Facility a couple of times, and then Kalin got caught. I knew from what Crow used to tell us that there was no way someone like Kalin would survive, so I…I let myself get caught, too. After that, we dissolved the Enforcers. I think they were worried about me; I'd only agreed to join because they promised that nobody would get hurt unless they had it coming. Um, I'm sorry for interrupting."

"It's fine. Though the name Kalin actually rings a bell."

"Yeah. He still runs around a bit. Full-blooded rebel with a heart of gold is what we used to call him. He used to tell stories about how he once met the Demon. He was a kid at the time. He said that the Demon had since died, though."

Yugi smiled. "Well, as Yami once said, you're partially right, but mostly misinformed. The Demon is dead, as far as society is concerned. However, there is no corpse. The Demon is an idea. I just personified him for a while. People see us as the disgrace of society; kids who get roped into gangs, or runaway, or end up in the Facility. They don't need to grant us the time of day. And nobody ever did. Until one day, a family met with me. They had been looking to adopt another kid, preferably a teen, and had had extensive experience with rehabilitating ex-gang members. Granted, Dad worked with adults, but they thought they could handle me." Yugi winked at Yusei, and then took on a sad smile. "They didn't know that I was the Demon, just that I was in a gang. And, honestly, I had been considering leaving for a while by that point."

"Was that Yami's family?"

Yugi closed his eyes and let out a soft, nostalgic laugh. "Yeah, that was them. They let me meet with Yami alone. We talked and, well, you know how he is. He managed to convince you to come home with him after just an hour or two together."

Yusei blinked. "I never thought of it like that before."

"Don't worry. Yami is and has always been the kind of guy who could sell ice to an Eskimo. It's that quality that allowed him to place so many kids."

"What got him into doing that, anyway? I mean, it's not exactly a common hobby."

Yugi lowered his head, bangs falling over his eyes. "No, it's not. And it all began with a car crash."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Yusei had a good hunch about who had been in that crash.

"Yeah. Thanks. I had been living with them for just a few years, but they were my family. Yami and I were almost in that car, too, but I'd caught a cold and Yami insisted on staying behind to take care of me. They never came back. Child Services came and got us. They decided that, based on my history, I wasn't going to be lucky enough to find a family again. Yami would have a better chance, but only as long as I wasn't in the picture."

"So they separated you." Yusei finished.

"You sound like you have experience there."

"The first place I got sent to, Martha's, was where I met Jack and Crow. She was overrun with kids and had to find a new place for me. I was lucky to remain in contact with them."

Yugi nodded. "I wasn't so lucky. The last time I saw Yami, he was being forcibly dragged away from me, yelling and cussing." He closed his eyes and lowered his head, Yami's voice still ringing through his ears. "I knew they were right; nobody else would want me. I knew I'd used up all the luck I'd had finding just one family. But that was gone. I honestly couldn't find any reason to continue on. Yami was gone. Mom and Dad were gone. I was back to where everybody saw me as only a puck kid, the son of the Motou Killers. I just…" he trailed off, wiping his hand over his eyes, trying to hide a lone tear. "To be blunt, I gave up on life. I never left my room, hardly even left my bed. I would just sit there and stare out the window, watching all the 'good kids' walk out with their new families. They started bringing me my food, instead of trying to drag me down to the dining hall, but I was hardly ever hungry."

Yyyyy

Joey's stomach was tied in knots and his eyes had long since misted over. Yugi, his Yugi, had given up? What he'd said to him just days ago…

'I'm no better than those people who dragged him down in the first place.'

"I'm not sure how much time went by, they said it was three months, but I couldn't tell." Yugi started talking again, and Joey took a breath and prepared to listen to the rest of the tale.

Yyyyy

"I guess Yami and I had both changed after being separated. While I fell into depression, he-," Yugi broke off with a soft laugh. "he decided that he didn't want another family. He wanted to be back with me."

"What did he do?" Yusei cocked his head to the side. "How did you two find each other again?"

Yugi got a faraway look in his eyes, smiling softly. "I want you to imagine Yami being forced to do something he doesn't want to do." He stopped to give the teen a moment to do just that. "How do you think he'd handle the situation?"

"Well," Yusei began, "I imagine he might try to talk his way out of it? He can be very persuasive, as you said."

Yugi let out a laugh. "That's not what he did. Nobody would listen to him, so he refused to listen to anyone. He became the worst kid he could. Families would foster him, or meet with him to adopt, all having heard about how well-mannered he was, and he would do whatever it took to get sent somewhere else. He even met Bakura during that time and managed to convince him to help find me. I wasn't aware that any of this was going on, though, until Yami arrived at where I was. He ran into my room and just, sort of, kidnapped me."

"Kidnapped you? What do you mean?"

"Bakura had managed to find out where I'd been staying, and Yami had snuck out of his current foster home to come find me. Apparently, I wasn't in the best shape when he got there, and they were trying to get him to leave, so he barricaded the door. Bakura and Ryou spent over a week sneaking us food and water before my social worker arrived." He snorted and took a sip of coffee. "Boy, was she mad. Nobody had thought to inform her of my state, or that the separation had affected us both to the point that we were currently holed up in my room with a blocked door."

Yusei tilted his head in confusion and Yugi paused, allowing him to ask what he wanted. "Why was she there, if it wasn't because of that?"

Yugi took a drink as he pondered how to best phrase what had happened. Outside the door, Joey leaned in closer, curious as well.

"She was there because someone made a mistake. Grandpa had been estranged from our family for years, so he hadn't been aware that my parents had given birth to me. He'd been out on a dig when they were arrested, and nobody could track him down. After a while, he'd decided to look into adopting and, somewhere along the paperwork, he'd gotten in contact with my social worker. Needless to say, he wanted to take me home, and Yami too, when he discovered I'd found myself a big brother."

"And he took you home and everything worked out in the end?" He wished he could take his words back as soon as he saw Yugi's face fall.

"Not…exactly. It wasn't like he could just take us right home. I ended up having to be hospitalized due to malnutrition. Second time in a row I'd had to go to the hospital before my new home."

Yusei blinked. "What do you mean?"

Yugi didn't respond at first. "I wanted to go home with Yami and his family. After they met with me we got to know each other through a few other meetings, just to make sure it would all be able to work out. But you don't just get to tell Ushio that you quit. I don't remember anything, but apparently Yami had followed me and ended up calling the police to come save me. He didn't leave my side the entire time I was recovering. Both times."

Yusei smiled. "I guess I was luckier than I thought to have run into him that night at the river."

"Yeah. Yami can't stand losing people he cares about, so if he sees you as family, he'll do whatever he can to protect you."

Suddenly, before either could continue, the door fell open and Joey stumbled into the room, trying to regain his balance. "Umm, oops?"

"How long were you out there?" Yugi asked.

Joey looked down in shame. "Long enough to realize that I was even more of a jerk than I thought."

"You didn't know. And besides, it's in the past, now."

Joey nodded, and then walked quickly over to Yugi, picked him up, being careful to avoid his injuries, and hugged him.

The smaller man laughed. "Joey, I don't need a hug."

Joey didn't put him down. "Well then, I do."

Yusei smiled when he saw Yugi blink, then close his eyes and return the hug, burying his face in the much larger man's shoulder. 'Jack was right.' He thought. 'Family means you stay together through the good _and_ the bad.'

Yyyyy

How did I do? Let me know! Review! :3


	15. Brothers

_"Happy birthday!"_ Yuma yelled, causing Jaden to awake with a jolt. "Guess _what_ , big brother! Since it's your birthday, I'm letting you sleep in! I'm gonna go play with Yusei instead!"

Jaden groaned and rolled over, shoving his head under his pillow.

"What was that, big brother? Are you awake? I can play with you if you're awake!" The boy ran back in.

"Yuma, what did I tell you? Leave him alone."

'Thank you, Yami' Jaden thought with relief.

"Waking him up on his sixteenth birthday is my job."

'Shoot me.'

Yami walked into his room already dressed, even though it was his day off. He took a seat on the side of the bed. "Jaden, let's go. You're sixteen today."

'Maybe if I'm quiet, he'll go away.'

"You know what being sixteen means, right?"

'Please let him go away…'

"We're going to spend the day down at the DMV getting your license."

'…He's not going to go away, is he?'

"C'mon, let's go." Yami stood and, while Yuma listened from the doorway, yanked the covers off the birthday boy. Jaden gave an indignant yelp and curled in on himself, desperately seeking warmth. "Get out of bed and join the rest of the living."

"No."

Yami sighed. "I didn't want to do this, but it looks like you leave me no choice." Moments later, Jaden was being dragged by his ankles to the floor and, when he still refused to admit he was awake, out the door. Yami would have continued all the way down to the kitchen if Yusei hadn't suddenly appeared in his bedroom doorway.

"Jaden, get up." He muttered sleepily, on his way to breakfast. "There is one pop-tart left and I'm not above eating it before the birthday boy." Yami rolled his eyes when that ended up working. Jaden was up and running in an instant.

They had been back at home for only two days, but things were already starting to fall back into routine. Yusei and Yugi cooked scrambled eggs and pancakes for breakfast, Jaden and Yuma bickered over who got the syrup first, and then who had caused the majority of the ensuing mess, but they all helped to clean up afterwards.

When it was all done, Yuma, Yusei, and Yugi bade Jaden good luck as his father escorted him out the door.

"Please God, or whatever deity may be listening right now, don't let me wreck the car." Jaden begged the sky.

Yami just laughed. "You'll do fine. Don't worry."

"Are you going to be in the car with me?" He asked hopefully.

"Not a chance."

Yyyyy

Jaden and Yami returned home just after lunch, new driver's license held aloft for everyone to see. Everybody congratulated Jaden, and Yuma gave him a picture he'd drawn of a misshapen green car surrounded by semi-dismembered orange stick figures. Apparently, people admiring the new car that Jaden would one day have.

"You did a very good job, Yuma." Yami praised the blind boy. Jaden had been so touched he'd hung the drawing on the wall above his bed.

"Can I go show Syrus? And Alexis and Chazz and Jesse?" He asked after that was done.

"Sure. Go ahead." Yugi smiled.

"Can I-,"

"No, you may not drive the car." Yami interrupted.

"Aww, come on!"

"Your instructor might have missed it, but don't think that I didn't see that fire hydrant."

Yyyyy

"Jaden." Yusei shook his brother. It was currently 10:30 at night and everyone else was asleep.

"Mn, Yusei? Whazzit?" The brunette grumbled incoherently.

"I have something to show you. Get dressed and bring a jacket."

"What? Why? Where are we going?"

"You'll see. Now get dressed."

Jaden was ready to go just five minutes later. He had grabbed a random jacket from his closet and was now questioning not only his brother's sanity, but his own as well.

"What are we doing, Yusei? Where are we going at practically midnight?"

"You'll see. Now, help me set up your ladder."

Jaden rolled his eyes and complied, retrieving his rope ladder and dropping in out the window. He trusted Yusei enough to know that this wasn't another attempt to run away from home, but he still made sure to grab his cell phone before climbing out the window. Yusei followed him down.

"Let's go. And be quiet."

They made their way through the outskirts of the city, Jaden asking questions every now and then, and Yusei just repeating that he would see when they got there. And, after an hour, Jaden saw. He saw the edge of Domino City, where it gave way to Satellite. He saw a large, grassy hill behind some abandoned and dilapidated buildings. He saw the train tracks, partially lit by the surrounding lights.

Yusei stopped and Jaden copied him. "You woke me up on my birthday, at an hour the _dead_ wouldn't be caught walking about, made me sneak out of my nice, warm bed, to look at the _train tracks_? Why?"

Yusei simply smiled as the boy's voice grew in confused frustration. "Tradition."

"What?" Yusei just walked over to one on the run down buildings and bent down, picking up large shards of glass. He collected as many as he could in a nearby blanket, before tying up the ends and proceeding to walk and stomp all over the bundle. Jaden sighed in defeat, knowing he wouldn't get an explanation until Yusei was ready to give it.

Once he was apparently satisfied, the amateur mechanic hefted the bundle and walked over to the train tracks. Checking both directions, he walked across and untied the blanket, showering the tiny shards of broken glass along the rocks, spreading them out so they'd cover more ground.

"Okay. Now what?" Jaden asked when Yusei was done.

"Now," Yusei smiled, checking once more for trains before beckoning for Jaden to cross to where he was, "we wait." He turned and began walking over to the grassy hill. They both sat at the top, looking over at the city. Even at night, the lights were blazing, though not as brightly as day.

Quietly, as if afraid to disturb the stillness now surrounding the two, Jaden removed his eyes from the postcard view he had never gotten to see before of his home city and questioned his brother. "What did you mean by tradition?"

Yusei didn't answer for a minute, lost either in the city lights or his own memories. Possibly both. "When I was…six? No, I was seven by then. It was the first year I had spent at Martha's orphanage, but the funding for the place was so low that we couldn't really do much for birthdays. We had a party, don't get me wrong, and that was more than I'd ever had, but Jack and Crow wanted to give me something else. They saved up whatever piece of glass they could find for over a month."

"And did they drag you out in the middle of the night" Jaden flashed a lopsided grin. It wasn't often that Yusei shared his past.

"Yes, actually." Yusei chuckled. "They didn't want Martha to know." The ground began to shake slightly, and Jaden at first thought it might have been himself shivering in the cold, but then a low rumble could be heard as well. Yusei glanced at him, eyes twinkling. "That means it's about to start." The rumble grew louder, and Yusei pointed down at the rocks, where he had laid the shattered glass. The light of the few surrounding lamp poles made them shine like little specks of stardust.

They both stopped trying to talk at this point, for a few reasons. The first and obvious one was that it was too loud to attempt communication. And the other reason was that _there was a train going by!_ Yusei only got to see this a few times a year on birthdays, but he closest Jaden had ever been to a passing train was when it went by at a railroad crossing. They weren't close enough to be in any danger, but it was still closer than they would have been allowed to get if an adult was present.

Jaden was mesmerized as he watched, heard, _felt_ the giant vehicle go by. From a distance, these behemoths had always looked so slow that he had occasionally fantasized about jumping on one, just to see where they went. Now that he could see how fast it really was, though, he had to fight the urge to lean back instinctively. The ground was vibrating so much that he felt it in his bones, and his stomach, and his heart, and his… arm?

Wait. That wasn't from the train. Yusei had begun tugging on his arm to get his attention. He pointed down to the tracks, then leaned over and had to yell in the younger boy's ear to be heard.

"Do you see the rocks?"

Jaden turned his attention to where the wheels were clanking and clacking over the rails. The glass shards were catching the light in between the boxes flying by in a dazzling array of tiny flashes.

"Imagine those are cameras." Yusei yelled, then grinned. Jaden raised his eyebrow. "It's what Jack told me. Just for today, on your birthday, you get to be on top of the world."

"Really?" Jaden grinned back, not used to Yusei being this corny.

Yusei blushed self-consciously and looked away. "It's what I was told."

Looking back down at the tracks, Jaden let himself be swept up into his imagination. This hill was his stage, the broken bits of glass the camera flashes of his adoring fans. The train became the roar of a crowd he had gotten excited, while the dark night sky, speckled with stars became the overhead lights of a darkened auditorium. And suddenly, the old, dusty jacket and his favorite pair of pajamas he was still clad in turned into a suit and tie worthy of the galas Uncle Seto attended.

Slipping his hand into his brother's, he leaned over gave him a tight hug. Suddenly, he couldn't wait to be awaked next year. Slowly, unseen by him, Yusei's smile returned, now awash with relief.

Yyyyy

"Man, that was fun." Jaden threw his arms wide and spun, walking backwards a ways.

Yusei smiled again as he watched his brother play around. He'd been a bit worried that Jaden wouldn't like his gift. After all, he had been born and raised in another country until Yami had adopted him. Seeing him like this, though eased his doubt. They were currently walking back home, very conscious of the fact that it was now one thirty.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself."

"You bet I enjoyed myself! That was so much fun!" He held out his arm, letting his watch reflect the light of the streetlamp they were passing under. "Hey, Yusei?" He asked after a small length of silence, voice no longer as excited.

"Hmm? What is it?"

"You said that you went through a lot of homes before ending up here. Do you always do this on your birthday?"

"Yeah. I've never really been taken in by anyone who lived too far away. Every year Jack, Crow, and Kalin sneak me out and we go to the nearest train tracks. We usually try to use these ones, though, because this is where the tradition started."

"Oh. Have you ever done this with any of your foster siblings before?"

Yusei remained stonily silent for a beat, but then turned to face him, eyes down. "No. You're the first I've done this with. This is the first place I've lived in that actually feels like… it could be my home. I don't want to leave."

Neither said anything for a moment, and both had stopped walking. Jaden smiled softly and stepped forward, wrapping his arms around his big brother. "And I don't want you to go anywhere. You're starting to get the hang of being a big brother." They shared a small laugh and Yusei returned the hug.

"Thanks." That was the moment it truly sank in for him; he was home, and he was home to stay.

Yyyyy

This chapter had to be almost completely re-written and the train scene redone. I'm sorry this took so long! Coming up next is the epilogue and I hope you all have enjoyed this story so far. Please remember to review before you leave! :3


End file.
